Women's Rugby League World Cup To Be Held Alongside Men's

The 2017 Women's Rugby League World Cup "will be held alongside the men's tournament for the very first time," according to the BBC. Australia will host the events, "with the finals being played back-to-back" on Dec. 2 in Brisbane. Tournament CEO Andrew Hill said that it was a "game-changer" for the sport. He said, "It has always been the board's vision to have the Women's Rugby League World Cup played concurrently with the men's tournament. We have been able to create what is a milestone moment for the sport" (BBC, 9/13). In Sydney, Amanda Lulham reported previously, the women's event "has been part of the user-pays Festival of World Cups that featured tournaments for women, defense, police, wheelchair and universities." Australia, New Zealand, England, Canada and Papua New Guinea are "confirmed for the women’s World Cup." The final team "will be determined at the Pacific Qualifying Series in October which will be contested by Fiji, Tonga, Samoa and the Cook Islands" (DAILY TELEGRAPH, 9/13).