Following the recent window of international rugby league fixtures, the latest IRL rankings have now been announced.
The international governing body have announced the updated world rankings ahead of the impending release of the draw for the 2026 Rugby League World Cup, with Samoa the most significant movers in both the men’s and women’s rankings.
Following a World Cup Final spot in 2022 and a second placed finish in the 2025 Pacific Championships, the Samoan men’s side move up to fourth place, overtaking Tonga, who they beat in the Championships at the end of October.
In the women’s game, the nation has also seen a huge rise following their Pacific Championships campaign, as they rise from 24th to 12th in the World.
The top three in all three codes of rugby league remain the same, with Australia at the top of the pile in both the men’s and women’s whilst England remain in first place in the Wheelchair game.
Despite the Ashes series whitewash, Shaun Wane’s side do not drop out of the podium positions, but will need a strong World Cup campaign if they are to retain their place in the top three, particularly with Samoa’s rapid rise.
The top nine teams in the men’s rankings all are nations competing in next year’s World Cup, with Tonga, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, France and Cook Islands making up places four to nine respectively.
The tenth team to feature in the 2026 tournament will be Lebanon, who have dropped significantly in the rankings. Going from 16th to 21st, the Cedars have only played one game since the end of 2022, and that was a defeat to Italy earlier this year.
There have been major changes for some smaller nations, too, including Ukraine, who jump from 17th to 12th. Serbia round out the final place in the top 10.
Ireland have risen to 14th, but both Wales and Scotland have dropped down to 13th and 28th respectively.
International Rugby League World Rankings
Men: Australia (1), New Zealand (2), England (3), Samoa (4), Tonga (5), PNG (6), Fiji (7), France (8), Cook Islands (9), Serbia (10), Netherlands (11), Ukraine (12), Wales (13), Ireland (14), Greece (15), Malta (16), Italy (17), Jamaica (18), USA (19), Poland (20).
Women: Australia (1), New Zealand (2), England (3), France (4), Samoa (5), Papua New Guinea (6), Wales (7), Ireland (8), Cook Islands (9), Fiji (10).
Wheelchair: England (1), France (2), Ireland (3), Australia (4), Wales (5), Scotland (6), Spain (7), USA (8), New Zealand (9), Italy (10).
