Image: Rugby League World Cup

The Men's Rugby League World Cup kicks off next autumn, with hosts England facing Samoa at Newcastle's St James's Park. While their road to World Cup victory may be uncertain, we take a guess at who England will have to defeat to reach the final.

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Last updated: 05/08/2021 at 10:06

It has been announced that the Rugby League World Cup 2021 (RLWC2021) has made the difficult decision to move the tournament to 2022. The decision was made following Australia and New New Zealand's withdrawal from the competition, and the subsequent challenges the RLWC2021 has faced.  

The 2022 tournament will mark the 16th edition of the RLWC, which is anticipated to be the best and largest-ever staged in the tournament's 67 year history.

The RLWC21 will also mark England's sixth time hosting, with the majority of fixtures taking place at stadiums across the north and the semi-final at London's Emirates Stadium.

To date, only three national teams have taken home the Men's RLWC trophy: Australia, Great Britain and New Zealand. Since 1995, Great Britain has been split into England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.

Although England are yet to win the competition, they have finished runners-up three times to Australia: in 1975, 1995 and 2017. Every other year, England has been represented by Great Britain.

Could the boys make history and triumph on home soil in 2022? Here's our predictions on the teams England must conquer to get a shot at World Cup glory.

Men's Rugby League World Cup 2021 draw

Group A:

  • England
  • Samoa
  • France
  • Greece

Group B:

  • Australia
  • Fiji
  • Scotland
  • Italy

Group C:

  • New Zealand
  • Lebanon
  • Jamaica
  • Ireland

Group D:

  • Tonga
  • Papua New Guinea
  • Wales
  • Cook Islands

2021 Rugby League World Cup schedule: England's group game fixtures

England v Samoa – Sat 23rd Oct at St James’ Park, Newcastle (opening game of tournament)

England v France – Sat 30th Oct at Uni of Bolton Stadium, Bolton

England v Greece – Sat 6th Nov at Bramall Lane, Sheffield

*All fixture dates and venues are subject to change following the postponement of the tournament to 2022. As soon as the new fixture schedule is released, this post will be update with the correct match dates.

RLWC21 knockout stages

If England are the winners or runners up of their group, their reward will be a place in the quarter-final at Liverpool's Anfield. If they progress, they'll secure a place in semi-final which is taking place at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium - this will be the first time the London stadium has hosted a sports match outside of football.

  • Quarter Final – Sat 13th Nov at Anfield, Liverpool
  • Semi Final – Sat 20th Nov at Emirates Stadium, London
  • Final – Sat 27th Nov at Old Trafford, Manchester

The other quarter-finals will be held at the KCOM Stadium, the John Smith's Stadium, Huddersfield, and the University of Bolton Stadium, Bolton. The second semi-final will be hosted at Elland Road, Leeds.

*All fixture dates and venues are subject to change following the postponement of the tournament to 2022. As soon as the new fixture schedule is released, this post will be update with the correct match dates.

RLWC21 VIP tickets and hospitality packages

Want to follow England on their route to the final? Be the first to hear when VIP tickets, hospitality and private box packages go on-sale, by signing up to our newsletter below.

All bookings made through the Seat Unique website will roll over to the new 2022 dates.  

Buy premium tickets and hospitality packages to the Men's Final here

Find out more about the hospitality options available for the Men's Rugby League World Cup semi-final here and the RLWC21 final here.