The board of International Rugby League will convene to consider options for the 2025 World Cup after the France 2025 organising committee was forced to withdraw from hosting the tournament earlier today.
IRL chair Troy Grant said the decision was very disappointing.
“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.”
Another man who has now echoed those thoughts of disappointment if French rugby league commentator Rodolphe Pires with the iconic voice sharing his thoughts with another of the game’s best on the mic.
Pires joined Andrew Voss on Vossy’s SEN Breakfast Radio Show down under to try and further explain the sudden cancellation.
The official line given was: “it hasn’t been possible to fully secure the risk of a deficit” with the change in government being another reported reason why there was such a staunch change of heart.
Pires has now told all on Australian radio and confirmed that the new government simply aren’t on board, whereas the former Prime Minister had been hugely positive.
“If you look back, what happened is last year we had, for the very first time, a big figure in French politics who said marvellous things about the game.
“Former Prime Minister launched, very enthusiastically, the 2025 Rugby League World Cup. For the very first time French Rugby League felt supported by the highest authorities of the state, but the political changes that followed, changing the Prime Minister, lead to a significant change of direction.
“Today we can question the resources France has available to organise the Rugby League World Cup, because let’s not forget Rugby League World Cup in France would have taken place after the Rugby Union World Cup and the Olympic Games, and then the Rugby League World Cup”.
The topic of other sporting events being hosted by France had been raised by some fans in that Paris will play host to the Rugby Union World Cup Final later this year and the Summer Olympics in 2024.
Pires explained this and how poor performances could also attribute to the tournament’s cancellation.
“It’s worth noting the scarcity of International competition and the poor performance of the French national team may not have strengthened the confidence the public authorities could have in French Rugby League.”
Only last month did both England’s men’s and women’s side defeat the French by scorelines of 64-0 in each game.
Pire summarised: “It’s a disappointment, because many French Rugby League fans feel betrayed”.
