USA lose rights to host 2025 World Cup

Initial plans to host the 2025 Rugby League World Cup in the United States and Canada have been scrapped.

It was announced in November 2017 that the tournament would be held across the Atlantic but hosting rights are now back on the market.

England and New Zealand both lost money playing a mid-season Test in Denver last year and there are no more plans to repeat the venture across the pond.

As a result, RLIF chief executive Nigel Wood has wrestled back the hosting privileges from Sydney-based promoter Jason Moore, the man behind the US bid.

Wood stated that they have not ruled out a World Cup in America, but the quality of the application would need to be sufficient in order to stage the tournament there.

Speaking to PA Sports he said: “The RLIF board has resolved that we have to take the rights back from Jason Moore and we have to run that tender process again to see who else is interested.

“That will happen in the second half of this year. It’s gone back onto the market but that doesn’t mean to say America or Canada are excluded – far from it.

“There have already been discussions with people who are interested in exploring how a World Cup would look in that continent.

“So there’s every chance it could still happen but it depends on the quality of the applications.”