📢Updated IRL World Rankings 🇨🇦🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿⬆️Canada, Scotland the big movers Canada Men’s and Women’s teams have been rewarded for successful European tours with both the Wolverines and Ravens making significant climbs in the latest IRL World Rankings announced ahead of IRL Rugby League World Cup 2026. The Wolverines rose 12 places from 29th to 17th after beating Norway and Netherlands, while suffering a 22-10 loss to Scotland, who have also moved up seven places to 20th in the World Rankings as of July 31. The Ravens, who failed to qualify for RLWC26 after losing to Fiji at the inaugural Women’s World Series in Toronto last November, were the biggest movers in the updated Women’s World Rankings. Canada are now ranked seventh – up from 13th after beating Wales and Scotland – both of whom were ranked higher before their meeting. Wales, who will play at the World Cup, effectively lost their seventh place ranking to the Ravens after the 14-0 loss in Neath on July 19, and will head into RLWC26 ranked ninth among Women’s teams in the IRL World Rankings. Scotland are the other big improvers in both Men’s and Women’s rankings after playing USA in Vegas in February and Canada in July. The Bravehearts lost 28-20 to the Hawks, who are ranked ,  and beat the Wolverines 22-10 to rise from 27th to 20th place. Scotland Women have climbed from 20th to 17th after a 26-14 win against the USA in Vegas and a 34-4 loss to Canada at Hawick. The updated Wheelchair IRL World Rankings will be announced on Friday, August 21. 📰Full details: internationalrugbyleague.com

🏆IRL announce RLWC26 broadcast partner International Rugby League is pleased to announce that Premier Sports has been awarded the broadcast rights for IRL Rugby League World Cup 2026 in Canada and South-East Asia. Kicking off in Sydney on October 15 with a heavyweight clash between Australia and New Zealand, RLWC26 will be the best and most competitive Rugby League World Cup yet and Premier Sports will broadcast matches in 21 countries across the two regions. With 26 teams from 14 nations playing across Men’s, Women’s and Wheelchair tournaments, RLWC26 showcases the growing strength and diversity of international rugby league while celebrating a proud history - since 1954 - as the second oldest sporting World Cup. In South-East Asia, Rugby League World Cup 2026 matches will be shown on the Premier Sports Asia network in Philippines, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, East Timor, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Pakistan. In Canada, matches will be shown on Premier Sports’ dedicated rugby streaming service, launched at the start of 2026. Premier Sports will broadcast up to 53 World Cup matches, including all 18 men’s fixtures, in each region. IRL Secretary-General Danny Kazandjian said the broadcast deal reflected the growth of the game in both regions, with Canada hosting the inaugural IRL Women’s World Series and the inaugural Asian Championships being staged in Philippines last year. “IRL is delighted to be partnering with Premier Sports in two regions which hold a lot of promise for rugby league development,” he said. “Canada’s growing rugby league community and strong viewing figures for last year’s IRL Women’s Rugby League World Series are signals that the world cup will be very popular. “Asia has shown a lot of interest in the sport recently. IRL is currently working on membership applications from three countries that are covered by Premier Sports’ broadcast, in addition to our existing Asian member nations. “We’re very pleased that viewers in both territories will now be able to watch the very best that the sport has to offer.” Ryle Nugent, CEO Premier Sports Asia and Canada, said: "Premier Sports are delighted to secure the exclusive broadcast rights to IRL Rugby League World Cup in both Southeast Asia and Canada. "Rugby League World Cup 2026 promises to be a fantastic celebration of Rugby League and we look forward to bringing our viewers the very best of the action, starting with a cracker of a fixture between Australia and New Zealand in Sydney on October 15th." The broadcast deal with Premier Sports follows the appointment last December of leading sports marketing agency IMG as IRL’s exclusive global media rights partner for IRL Rugby League World Cup 2026. 📰 internationalrugbyleague.com