The IRL have confirmed the 2030 Rugby League World Cup will be heading to the United States of America.
In an announcement on Monday morning, IRL chairman Tony Grant confirmed the ARLC and NRL would host the tournament in the USA, with a magic round format to be used across all five weeks.
The five cities to host the tournament are yet to be confirmed, but both the men's and women's tournaments will play in the same city on the same weekend before moving on, seeing 11 games across the two tournaments per week.
"The IRL Board has decided that the next Rugby League World Cup for Men and Women in 2030 will be staged in the Pacific-USA. The next Wheelchair World Cup is going to be run at the same time in France," Grant said in a statement confirming the news.
"This is a strategy to maximise the interest of broadcasters, government partners and fans in the current World Cup, which has regularly broken records for crowds and the number of television viewers because of the outstanding skill, intensity and passion of the players and teams.
"At the same time we want to take advantage of opportunities that are opening up in new frontiers where the Rugby League World Cup hasn't previously been played.
"The ARLC have agreed to be the organisers, with the IRL, of RLWC30. They will be our tournament partners, and I would like to thank ARLC Executive Chairman Peter V'landys for his vision and support to grow international rugby league and ensure the Rugby League World Cup is the pinnacle of our game.
"The World Cup under its current format runs for five weeks and RLWC30 is going to be run in five locations across the Pacific and USA. We haven't decided where yet; we are going to market and will look at the strategic placement of which cities we go to.
"The cities will be ones that have the appropriate stadia to run matches over multiple days to get all of the pool matches played in one location.
"This will be similar to a Magic Round, so IRL Rugby League World Cup 2030 will arrive in town, the stadium will be activated and there will be a lot of opportunities to promote the teams and the game. The World Cup will then move to the next city that is identified.
"The IRL Board has also decided to increase the number of participating nations from 10 Men's teams and eight Women's teams in 2026, to 12 Men's teams and 10 Women's teams.
"The format for what that will look like is yet to be decided and nations were asked for feedback during the IRL AGM and Congress in Sydney over the weekend."
Grant also confirmed that, for the men's tournament at least, eight teams will automatically qualify, before four others will be granted opportunities through a World Series format.
First tipped over the weekend, the decision has now been ratified by the board of the IRL, who have also locked in a switch in eligibility rules to see great grandparents now make a player available to play for a nation, while it has also been confirmed that Tonga and Samoa are likely to become Tier 1 nations.
That last point will alter the way international rugby league is played, with Grant suggesting during his announcement that players switching between nations every year is not good for the game.
An amnesty period will be locked in for players to make their decisions, although the Tongan and Samoan promotion to Tier 1 nations is not yet locked in.
"The Board voted unanimously to engage with Tonga and Samoa on elevating them from Tier 2 to Tier 1 status," Grant said.
"I have been in contact with both nations to advise them of the Board's decision. We will be working with them over the next couple of months to ensure there is no unintended consequences from that potential elevation to Tier 1.
"This is out of respect and acknowledgement of their achievements on two fronts; obviously their performances on field are without question the equivalent of the current three Tier 1 nations and secondly these two nations have taken gigantic leaps forward regarding their governance and what they are doing domestically."
The US has edged out South Africa, Kenya, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea to claim hosting rights for the 2030 tournament, with as many as seven nations originally expressing interest.
The US was originally set to host this World Cup in 2025 before pulling out. Their replacement hosts, France, also pulled out of hosting, which saw Australia take over the tournament in 2026.
It's believed the IRL are keen for the 2034 tournament to return to Europe, meaning a World Cup in Africa, or stand alone in New Zealand, may have to wait until 2038, and Australia may not host the tournament again until at least the 2040s.
