Australia v New Zealand: men's Rugby League World Cup opener in Sydney

Australia and New Zealand opened the 2026 men's Rugby League World Cup in Sydney on 15 October 2026.

Kick-off was at 8.05pm AEDT / 10.05pm NZDT / 10.05am BST. The match referee was Adam Gee, the man in the middle for the recent NRL grand final.

The 2026 men's RLWC features ten teams; eight qualified via their performances at the 2022 World Cup — Australia, New Zealand, England, Samoa, Tonga, Fiji, PNG and Lebanon — while France and the Cook Islands advanced through regional playoffs. Lebanon are ranked 23rd, the Cook Islands are ranked eighth and France have slipped to 11th. The tournament will be played under NRL rules, including six players on the interchange bench with up to four to be used.

The ten teams have been distributed into three pools, with Pool A containing Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and the Cook Islands and the top two from that group qualifying for the semi-finals. Teams in Pool B — England, Samoa and Lebanon — will play teams in Pool C — Tonga, PNG and France — with the top two on a combined group table qualifying for the semi-finals. The winner of Pool A will face the runner-up from Pools B and C in Sydney, while the winner of Pools B and C will play the runner-up from Pool A in Newcastle. The World Cup final is in Brisbane on 15 November. The group phase will take place over the following three weekends, with remaining matches after tonight staged only on Fridays, Saturdays or Sundays; the fourth weekend will feature the semi-finals and the final will be held on the following Sunday. Ten locations will host matches: eight in Australia — Sydney (Allianz Arena and Commbank Arena), Brisbane, Newcastle, Gold Coast, Townsville, Wollongong and Perth — while Port Moresby will host two Papua New Guinea matches and Christchurch will stage one New Zealand fixture.