How to Watch the Rugby League World Cup 2026 From Anywhere
Fifty-three matches across three tournaments, played in Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea between 15 October and 15 November. Where you watch depends entirely on which country you are in, and for most of the world the answer is now a single streaming platform.
Broadcaster by country
| Territory | Broadcaster | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | Seven and 7plus | Host broadcaster. Men’s, women’s and wheelchair tournaments, free to air |
| New Zealand | Sky Sport | Tournament coverage |
| Papua New Guinea | Digicel | Tournament coverage |
| United Kingdom and Ireland | Premier Sports | All 18 men’s matches live, every England women’s and wheelchair match, plus both semi-finals and finals |
| Canada | Premier Sports | Tournament coverage |
| 22 Asian territories | Premier Sports Asia | Tournament coverage |
| 129 further countries | Premier Sports Player | Every game of all three tournaments, streamed |
Australia: free to air on Seven
Seven is the host broadcaster and carries all three tournaments, the men’s, the women’s and the wheelchair, on free-to-air television and on 7plus. There is no subscription and no pay wall. For a World Cup on home soil the governing bodies went with reach over rights money.
United Kingdom and Ireland: Premier Sports
International Rugby League confirmed Premier Sports as the exclusive UK and Ireland broadcaster in August. It is the third time Premier Sports has held the tournament, after 2013 and 2017, and the 2017 edition was also staged in Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea.
The deal covers all 18 men’s matches live, every England match in the women’s and wheelchair tournaments, and the semi-finals and finals of both. Premier Sports chief executive Richard Sweeney said there would be “full studio presentation around every England fixture”.
The catch for British viewers is the clock rather than the coverage. England open against Tonga in Perth on 17 October, and Perth is eight hours ahead of the UK in October. Most matches land between breakfast and lunchtime.
The rest of the world: Premier Sports Player
IRL has put every match of all three tournaments on the Premier Sports Player streaming platform in a further 129 countries. That covers 45 in Africa, 38 in Europe, 34 in the Americas and 12 in Asia, and it includes the United States, France, Japan, Brazil and South Africa.
IRL secretary general Danny Kazandjian framed it as a reach decision: “It was very important that rugby league fans all around the world have the opportunity to watch the Rugby League World Cup.”
If you are following England
Brian McDermott’s side have the most awkward schedule of the tournament, with two of their three pool matches in Perth, which is on the opposite side of the country from almost everything else.
| Date | Match | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| Sat 17 October | England v Tonga | HBF Park, Perth |
| Sat 24 October | England v France | HBF Park, Perth |
| Fri 30 October | England v Papua New Guinea | WIN Stadium, Wollongong |
The opener is a rematch of the 2017 semi-final in Auckland, the last time these two met at a World Cup, and the Wollongong match against Papua New Guinea is likely to decide a semi-final place for whoever wins it. England are in the combined Pools B and C table, so they can finish above a side they never play.
England Women are in Perth on the same two dates, against Wales on 17 October and Australia on 24 October, before meeting Fetu Samoa at WIN Stadium on 30 October in what also looks like a must-win game.
The three tournaments, and when they finish
| Tournament | Final | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| Men’s | Sun 15 November | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane |
| Women’s | Sun 15 November | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane, as a double-header with the men’s |
| Wheelchair | Fri 13 November | WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong |
The wheelchair tournament is staged in its entirety at Wollongong from 30 October, which makes it the easiest of the three to follow in one place.
What time are the matches?
Kick-offs run from mid-afternoon to evening local time in Australia, which puts them in the morning for the UK and overnight for the Americas. Every date, kick-off time and venue is listed on the full World Cup draw and schedule, and the pool standings page carries results as they land.
