France have withdrawn from hosting the 2025 Rugby League World Cup (RLWC), leaving organisers in limbo just two years out from the tournament.
After a highly-successful 2022 edition in England, international rugby league's pinnacle event was set to remain in the northern hemisphere and give a boost to a growing nation.
But in a shock development, French rugby league officials decided that the financial impact of holding the tournament was too big a risk.
In a statement released on Monday night (AEST), the committee announced their decision to withdraw from hosting the RLWC and admitted it was a tough call to make.
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"An exceptional Board meeting of France2025 was held to deliberate on the finalisation of the economic and financial model for the Rugby League World Cup 2025, whose organisation was given to France by the International Rugby League," the statement said.
"Despite all the work carried out by the Organising Committee, it hasn’t been possible to fully secure the risk of a deficit.
"The conditions of financial viability initially defined by the State to support the project, set in January 2022, were not fully met, despite the search for solutions and the additional three months granted by the State to the organising committee at the end of 2022.
"This difficult decision was taken so as not to threaten the robustness of the major international sporting event models that France now wishes to promote.
"In addition, the State will reinforce the support it provides to the XIlI rugby development plan supported by the Federation, to ensure that this sport has a better visibility and to make it shine again in France."
Where is the Rugby League World Cup?
At this stage, the next RLWC is without a home following the decision from French officials to withdraw from their arranged hosting duties.
Australia or New Zealand would loom as the likely candidates to take the tournament given the built-in rugby league audience and facilities, while the United States could be an outside chance.
NZRL have already publicly expressed their interest in holding the major tournament.
2025 ✍️ pic.twitter.com/mMgTPcr3Ea
— NZ Rugby League (@NZRL_Kiwis) May 15, 2023
IRL Chairman Troy Grant expressed his disappointment with the decision but is hopeful of a resolution by July.
“It’s difficult to express how disappointed I am with this news," he said.
"There’s no secret as to how important the strengthening of France as a rugby league nation is to our global game and central to our strategic plans.
“The Rugby League World Cup in France in 2025 was always an ambitious project given the unprecedented short lead in time due to the pandemic, however it had the advantage of following and leveraging off the widely acknowledged RLWC2021 success.
“I respect the French Government’s decision amid the challenges they are facing but I can’t hide my disappointment, that I conveyed clearly to them in person.
“Despite our focus having been on France, we will now accelerate our consideration of other contingency options.”
“The board meets face to face in July and we will then be able to determine together our next steps forward and consider the other bids we have received for not only 2025, but 2029, 2033 and World Cup 9s events in the future.
“Exciting international content for 2023 and 2024, in addition to the recent historic Tongan tour to England, will be announced publicly shortly, which will be the front end of our much needed and highly anticipated calendar.”
