2008 Rugby League World Cup
13th Rugby League World Cup tournament / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The 2008 Rugby League World Cup was the thirteenth World Cup for men’s rugby league national teams. It was held between 26 October and 22 November and was won by New Zealand, who defeated Australia 34–20 in the final in one of the greatest upsets in the sports history.
2008 (2008) Rugby League World Cup () | |
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Number of teams | 10 |
Host country | ![]() |
Winner | ![]() |
Matches played | 18 |
Attendance | 293,442 (16,302 per match) |
Points scored | 890 (49.44 per match) |
Tries scored | 156 (8.67 per match) |
Top scorer | ![]() |
Top try scorer | ![]() |
Originally there was a plan to hold a World Cup in Australia in 2004,[1] however the lack of competitiveness at the 2000 World Cup and rise of the Tri-Nations between Australia, New Zealand and Great Britain meant that plans for another World Cup were shelved.[2]
For the World Cup to regain some credibility, the number of teams was reduced to ten with Australia, England, France Papau New Guinea and New Zealand automatically qualifying and a qualifying tournament to determine the other five teams. The tournament ended a year of celebrations commemorating the centenary of the game in the southern hemisphere and was part of the Festival of World Cups.