2017 Rugby League World Cup qualifying

2017 Rugby League World Cup qualification
Tournament details
Dates	9 May 2015 – 29 October 2016
Teams	15 (from 4 confederations)
Tournament statistics
Matches played	28
	← 2013 2021 →

The 2017 Rugby League World Cup qualifying process began on 9 May 2015 with the 2015 European Championship C. In August 2014, it was announced that seven of the eight quarter-finalists at the 2013 tournament would receive automatic qualification.^[1] Fourteen teams took part in the qualifying process to fill the remaining seven spots.

Qualified teams[]

Region	Team	Qualification method	Previous appearances	Previous best result
Americas	United States	Americas winner	1	Quarter-finals (2013)
Asia-Pacific	Australia	Hosts	14	Champions (1957, 1968, 1970, 1975, 1977, 1985–88, 1989–92, 1995, 2000, 2013)
	Fiji	Automatic	4	Semi-finals (2008, 2013)
	New Zealand	Hosts	14	Champions (2008)
	Papua New Guinea	Hosts	6	Quarter-finals (2000)
	Samoa	Automatic	4	Quarter-finals (2000, 2013)
	Tonga	Asia-Pacific play-off	4	Group stages (1995, 2000, 2008, 2013)
Europe	England^[a]	Automatic	5	Runners-up (1975, 1995)
	France	Automatic	14	Runners-up (1954, 1968)
	Ireland^[a]	Europe play-off 1	3	Quarter-finals (2000, 2008)
	Italy	Europe repechage	1	Group stages (2013)
	Scotland^[a]	Automatic	3	Quarter-finals (2013)
	Wales^[a]	Europe play-off 2	4	Semi-finals (1995, 2000)
Middle East-Africa	Lebanon	Middle East-Africa play-off	1	Group stages (2000)

^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d Competed as part of Great Britain in nine previous tournaments, finishing as champions on three occasions (1954, 1960, 1972). The squads largely consisted of English players, but also featured Welsh players in every tournament. Scotland (1954, 1968, 1977, 1989–92) and Ireland (1957) were represented by native-born players in some tournaments.

Qualifying process[]

Eight teams automatically qualified for the World Cup. Seven of the teams which reached the quarter-finals of the 2013 World Cup were granted automatic qualification, along with co-hosts Papua New Guinea.^[2] The eighth quarter-finalist, the United States, were denied automatic qualification due to an internal governance dispute and instead forced to enter the qualification process.^{[citation needed]}

Continental qualification[]

European[]

Three additional teams qualified from this region. A two-group, round-robin tournament took place in October 2016 to determine the qualifying nations - this was contested by the winners of the 2015 European Championship C tournament, the top three teams from the 2014–15 European Championship B tournament, and seeded nations Wales and Ireland.^[3] The tournament featured two groups of three teams playing in a single round-robin format. The winners of each group qualified for the World Cup, while the runners-up faced each other in a play-off match on 5 November 2016 to determine the final spot. A seeded draw took place to determine the groups on 5 November 2015.

Key to colours in pool tables
	Qualifies for the 2017 Rugby League World Cup
	Qualifies for play-off match for the 2017 Rugby League World Cup
	Fails to qualify for the 2017 Rugby League World Cup

Group A

Team v t	Pld	W	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts
Wales	2	2	0	70	14	+56	4
Italy	2	1	1	76	34	+42	2
Serbia	2	0	2	14	112	−98	0

Source:^{[citation needed]}


15 October 2016	Wales	50–0	Serbia	Stebonheath Park, Llanelli
22 October 2016	Serbia	14–62	Italy	Makiš Stadium, Belgrade
29 October 2016	Italy	14–20	Wales	Stadio Brianteo, Monza

Group B

Team v t	Pld	W	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts
Ireland	2	2	0	116	22	+94	4
Russia	2	1	1	56	76	−20	2
Spain	2	0	2	12	86	−74	0

Source:^{[citation needed]}


15 October 2016	Russia	40–6	Spain	, Moscow
22 October 2016	Spain	6–46	Ireland	, Valencia
29 October 2016	Ireland	70–16	Russia	Carlisle Grounds, Bray

European play-off[]


4 November 2016	Italy	76–0	Russia	Leigh Sports Village, Leigh, England

Asia-Pacific[]

Two additional qualifying places were initially allocated to this region. Papua New Guinea were granted automatic qualification in 2015 after being confirmed as co-hosts, leaving one additional team to qualify from this region. A single play-off between Tonga and Cook Islands determined the final qualifier.


17 October 2015	Tonga	28–8	Cook Islands	Campbelltown Stadium, Campbelltown, Australia

Americas[]

One team qualified from this region. A three-team round robin tournament was held in Florida in December 2015 to determine the qualifier.^[4]

Team v t	Pld	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts
United States	2	2	0	0	54	38	+16	4
Jamaica	2	0	1	1	32	38	−6	1
Canada	2	0	1	1	42	52	−10	1

Source:^{[citation needed]}


4 December 2015	United States	20–14	Jamaica	Hodges Stadium, Jacksonville, Florida
8 December 2015	Canada	18–18	Jamaica	Spec Martin Stadium, DeLand, Florida
12 December 2015	United States	34–24	Canada	Hodges Stadium, Jacksonville, Florida

Middle East-Africa[]

One team qualified from this region. A two match series was held between South Africa and Lebanon to determine the qualifier.^[5]


25 October 2015	South Africa	12–40	Lebanon	Bosman Stadium, Brakpan
31 October 2015	South Africa	16–50	Lebanon	Bosman Stadium, Brakpan

References[]

^ "Qualification Details for 2017 Rugby League World Cup Announced". RLEF. 3 August 2014. Archived from the original on 8 August 2014.
^ Papua New Guinea to co-host Rugby League World Cup
^ "European Qualifiers for World Cup 2017 Announced". Rugby League International Federation. 15 April 2015. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
^ "Rugby League World Cup Qualifiers Awarded to Jacksonville & Deland, FL". Archived from the original on 16 August 2015. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
^ "Venue changed for Middle East-Africa RLWC qualifier". Asia Pacific Rugby League Confederation. 24 July 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2015.

[GB-2] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d Competed as part of Great Britain in nine previous tournaments, finishing as champions on three occasions (1954, 1960, 1972). The squads largely consisted of English players, but also featured Welsh players in every tournament. Scotland (1954, 1968, 1977, 1989–92) and Ireland (1957) were represented by native-born players in some tournaments.

[1] "Qualification Details for 2017 Rugby League World Cup Announced". RLEF. 3 August 2014. Archived from the original on 8 August 2014.

[3] Papua New Guinea to co-host Rugby League World Cup

[4] "European Qualifiers for World Cup 2017 Announced". Rugby League International Federation. 15 April 2015. Retrieved 15 April 2015.

[5] "Rugby League World Cup Qualifiers Awarded to Jacksonville & Deland, FL". Archived from the original on 16 August 2015. Retrieved 13 August 2015.

[6] "Venue changed for Middle East-Africa RLWC qualifier". Asia Pacific Rugby League Confederation. 24 July 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2015.

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