It's the Rugby League World Cup - a cross-cultural melting pot with teams from the Americas, Europe and the Pacific ready to do battle.
But with 16 teams in the men's competition and hundreds of names to familiarise yourself with, we've had a look at the squads to determine just who are the three players from each nation you need to be watching.
Samoa
Joseph Suaali'i
This is about the easiest call we could make. All eyes will be on Suaali'i when Samoa kick off their tournament against the hosts in the opening game in Newcastle, and with good reason. In his first full season at NRL level Suaali'i has been a revelation, scoring 15 tries in 19 appearances, breaking 64 tackles and averaging 138 metres per game.
The highly rated 19-year-old has gone from strength to strength in 2022, and was considered a certainty to play for Australia before expressing his intent to represent the Pacific nation. With incredible pace and a wealth of natural talent, expect him to see a lot of the ball as a member of Samoa's world-class backline.
Spencer Leniu
A two-time premiership winner, Leniu finished of 2022 in career-best form, making a notable impact from the bench every time he took the field, and as damaging as he was at NRL level, he'll make an explosive impact and cause any defence further headaches when he takes the field to replace Junior Paulo or Josh Papalii.
But he's not just a hard-running tackling machine either, with an ability to not just break the line but to find it as well, scoring six tries this season – impressive for a prop who plays almost exclusively off the pine. With a number of clubs closely monitoring his future, expect the 22-year-old to become a highly-prized target after he consolidates his standing at the World Cup.
Fa'amanu Brown
After struggling for regular opportunity in the NRL for a number of years, a season in England's second division seems to have reinvigorated Brown, and he seemed a new man when he returned to the NRL for Wests Tigers in 2022. He made just 36 NRL appearances between 2014-19 before moving to Featherstone in 2021, where he set the competition alight scoring 16 tries in just 25 appearances – playing primarily in the halves.
After a return to Australia, he found his way into the Wests Tigers team and was a breath of fresh air during a disappointing run home for the club, scoring two tries off the bench in his first appearance before securing the starting No.9 role. After years of patience the 27-year-old has taken his opportunity with both hands, and expect his fine fettle to continue at the tournament.
