Rugby League World Cup 2021 (RLWC2021) has today revealed that the women’s and wheelchair nations will receive participation fees, for the first time in the tournament’s history. The participation fees are equal across all three competitions.
Prize money will also be awarded to women’s and wheelchair nations for the first time, as the tournament celebrates inclusivity being at the core of decision making ahead of the biggest and best Rugby League World Cup.
Participation fees for men’s nations will increase by 125% compared to 2017. There will be a revised participation agreement for all competing nations that considers player welfare, codes of conduct and commercial fulfilments.
RLWC2021 will continue to work with the International Rugby League (IRL) and player associations to ensure there is a minimum payment for all players competing in the tournament.
Jon Dutton, Chief Executive of RLWC2021, said: “Our board have worked hard with colleagues at the IRL and the Rugby League Players Association (RLPA) to secure this positive and ground-breaking decision and we’re delighted with the outcome. One of our core values as a tournament is inclusivity and we believe that our revised agreements showcase our determination to ensure we celebrate this in 2021.”
Nigel Wood, Chief Executive of IRL, added: “Once again international rugby league has shown itself to be progressive and relentless is its aspiration to embrace true inclusivity. These announcements are a tribute to the journey the women’s and wheelchair games have made over the past decade.
“Both of these disciplines of our sport have the chance to establish rugby league as market leaders in their particular fields.”