Rugby League World Cup venues

Headingley in Leeds has hosted games in eight Rugby League World Cups – the most of any venue

The following is a list of venues that have hosted matches in the Rugby League World Cup . ^[1]

The first Rugby league World Cup was staged in France in 1954 with the last having been staged in England in 2022. The next World Cup is set to be held in 2026

As of 2022, 16 Rugby League World Cups have been held since the inaugural event in 1954.

Venues by tournament

Old Trafford in Manchester has hosted the most Rugby League World Cup finals – with three

Parc des Princes in Paris hosted the first Rugby League World Cup Final in 1954

Lang Park in Brisbane has hosted games in seven Rugby League World Cup – the joint second most of any venue along with the now demolished Central Park

Wembley Stadium in London is the largest venue ever to be used in the Rugby League World Cup at 90,000 capacity – it hosted the 2013 semi-finals as a double header

Eden Park in Auckland hosted the 1988 World Cup Final. To date this is the only time the Final has been held in New Zealand

The Gnoll in Neath is the smallest venue ever to be used in the Rugby League World Cup at 5,000 capacity – it was also used in 2013 for one group game

All countries are listed in alphabetical order, while all venues are listed in order of appearance and with their non-corporate name (unless unavoidable). Venue capacity is listed as it currently stands and may vary from the capacity of the venue at the time of use. For example, the Sydney Cricket Ground's current spectator capacity is 48,000 but stood at 70,000 when used as a World Cup venue from 1957 to 1977.

• Stadiums in bold text show Rugby League World Cup final hosts for that tournament.
• Stadiums in italic text show ground has been demolished as of 2024.
• Highest Attendance is the highest for that particular tournament.

France 1954

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Paris	Parc des Princes	48,229	30,368
Bordeaux	Stade Chaban Delmas	34,462	14,000
Lyon	Stade de Gerland	25,000	10,250
Marseille	Stade Vélodrome	67,394	20,000
Nantes	Stade Marcel Saupin	1,880	13,000
Toulouse	Stadium Municipal	33,150	37,471

Australia 1957

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Brisbane	Brisbane Cricket Ground	37,478	29,636
Sydney	Sydney Cricket Ground	48,000	58,655

United Kingdom 1960

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Bradford	Odsal Stadium	26,019	33,023
Leeds	Headingley	19,700	10,773
Swinton	Station Road	15,000	22,923
Wigan	Central Park	18,000	20,278

Australia and New Zealand 1968

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Sydney	Sydney Cricket Ground	48,000	62,256
Brisbane	Lang Park	52,500	32,664
Auckland	Carlaw Park	17,000	18,000

United Kingdom 1970

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Leeds	Headingley	19,700	18,776
Bradford	Odsal Stadium	26,019	6,654
Castleford	Wheldon Road	10,500	8,958
Hull	The Boulevard	10,500	3,824
Swinton	Station Road	15,000	5,609
Wigan	Central Park	18,000	9,805

France 1972

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Lyon	Stade de Gerland	25,000	4,231
Grenoble	Stade Lesdiguières	12,000	5,321
Marseille	Stade Vélodrome	67,394	20,748
Paris	Parc des Princes	48,229	8,000
Pau	Stade du Hameau	14,588	7,500
Perpignan	Stade Gilbert Brutus	13,000	6,324
Toulouse	Stadium Municipal	33,150	10,332

Australia, France, New Zealand, and United Kingdom 1975

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Leeds	Headingley	19,700	10,842
Brisbane	Lang Park	52,500	12,000
Sydney	Sydney Cricket Ground	48,000	33,858
Bradford	Odsal Stadium	26,019	5,507
Salford	The Willows	11,363	2,247
Warrington	Wilderspool Stadium	9,200	5,034
Wigan	Central Park	18,000	9,353
Bordeaux	Stade Chaban Delmas	34,462	1,581
Marseille	Stade Vélodrome	67,394	10,000
Perpignan	Stade Gilbert Brutus	13,000	10,440
Toulouse	Stadium Municipal	33,150	7,563
Auckland	Carlaw Park	17,000	18,000
Christchurch	Addington Showgrounds	18,000	2,500
Swansea	St Helens Rugby Ground	4,500	11,112

Australia and New Zealand 1977

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Sydney	Sydney Cricket Ground	48,000	24,457
Brisbane	Lang Park	52,500	27,000
Auckland	Carlaw Park	17,000	18,000
Christchurch	Addington Showgrounds	18,000	9,000

International 1985–1988

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Auckland	Eden Park	50,000	47,363
Brisbane	Lang Park	52,500	22,811
Sydney	Sydney Football Stadium	45,500	15,944
Wagga Wagga	Eric Weissel Oval	10,000	11,685
Leeds	Headingley	19,700	6,567
Wigan	Central Park	18,000	20,169
Avignon	Parc des Sports	17,518	4,000
Carcassonne	Stade Albert Domec	10,000	5,000
Perpignan	Stade Gilbert Brutus	13,000	5,000
Auckland	Carlaw Park	17,000	15,327
Christchurch	Addington Showgrounds	18,000	8,525
Port Moresby	Lloyd Robson Oval	14,800	17,000

International 1989–1992

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
London	Old Wembley Stadium	82,000	73,631
Brisbane	Lang Park	52,500	32,313
Parkes	Pioneer Oval	12,000	12,384
Townsville	Townsville Sports Reserve	6,500	12,470
Hull	The Boulevard	10,500	5,250
Leeds	Elland Road	37,792	32,500
Wigan	Central Park	18,000	20,346
Carcassonne	Stade Albert Domec	10,000	4,208
Perpignan	Stade Gilbert Brutus	13,000	3,965
Auckland	Mount Smart Stadium	25,000	15,000
Christchurch	Queen Elizabeth II Park	25,000	3,133
Christchurch	Addington Showgrounds	18,000	2,000
Goroka	Danny Leahy Oval	13,000	11,485
Port Moresby	Lloyd Robson Oval	14,800	14,500

England 1995

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
London	Old Wembley Stadium	82,000	66,540
Gateshead	Gateshead International Stadium	11,800	9,181
Huddersfield	Kirklees Stadium	24,121	16,608
Hull	The Boulevard	10,500	5,121
Keighley	Cougar Park	7,800	4,845
Leeds	Headingley	19,700	14,041
Manchester	Old Trafford	55,000	30,042
St. Helens	Knowsley Road	17,500	8,679
Warrington	Wilderspool Stadium	9,200	8,083
Wigan	Central Park	18,000	26,263
Cardiff	Ninian Park	21,508	10,250
Swansea	Vetch Field	11,475	15,385

England, France, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales 2000

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Manchester	Old Trafford	68,217	44,329
Bolton	Reebok Stadium	28,723	16,032
Castleford	Wheldon Road	10,500	5,158
Gateshead	Gateshead International Stadium	11,800	9,181
Gloucester	Kingsholm Stadium	16,115	2,496
Hull	Craven Park	12,225	2,187
Hull	The Boulevard	10,500	3,044
Huddersfield	McAlpine Stadium	24,121	8,144
Leeds	Headingley	19,700	15,405
London	Twickenham Stadium	82,000	33,758
Reading	Madejski Stadium	24,161	3,982
St. Helens	Knowsley Road	17,500	5,736
Watford	Vicarage Road	22,220	5,404
Widnes	Halton Stadium	13,350	5,211
Workington	Derwent Park	10,000	4,107
Edinburgh	Tynecastle Stadium	19,852	1,579
Glasgow	Firhill Stadium	10,102	2,008
Cardiff	Millennium Stadium	73,931	17,612
Llanelli	Stradey Park	10,800	1,497
Wrexham	Racecourse Ground	13,341	5,016
Dublin	Tolka Park	5,700	1,782
Belfast	Windsor Park	18,500	3,207
Albi	Stadium Municipal d'Albi	13,058	7,969
Carcassonne	Stade Albert Domec	10,000	10,288
Paris	Stade Sébastien Charléty	20,000	7,498
Toulouse	Stadium Municipal	33,150	4,313

Australia 2008

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Brisbane	Lang Park	52,500	50,599
Canberra	Canberra Stadium	25,011	9,827
Gold Coast	Robina Stadium	27,690	11,278
Gosford	Central Coast Stadium	20,059	9,720
Melbourne	Docklands Stadium	56,347	36,297
Newcastle	Newcastle International Sports Centre	30,000	15,145
Rockhampton	Browne Park	8,000	5,930
Sydney	Parramatta Stadium	20,741	8,067
Sydney	Penrith Stadium	22,500	11,787
Sydney	Sydney Football Stadium	45,500	34,157
Townsville	Willows Sports Complex	26,500	16,239
Wollongong	Wollongong Showground	23,750	9,213

England and Wales 2013

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Manchester	Old Trafford	74,310	74,468
Bristol	Memorial Stadium	11,000	7,247
Halifax	The Shay	10,401	10,266
Huddersfield	Kirklees Stadium	24,121	24,375
Hull	Craven Park	12,225	7,481
Hull	Hull City Stadium	25,586	25,114
Leeds	Headingley	19,700	18,180
Leigh	Leigh Sports Village	12,000	10,554
London	Wembley Stadium	90,000	67,545
Rochdale	Spotland Stadium	10,249	8,872
Salford	City of Salford Stadium	12,000	6,041
St. Helens	Langtree Park	18,000	14,137
Wigan	Wigan Athletic Stadium	25,138	22,276
Warrington	Halliwell Jones Stadium	15,300	14,965
Workington	Derwent Park	10,000	7,630
Cardiff	Millennium Stadium	73,931	45,052
Neath	The Gnoll	6,000	3,270
Wrexham	Racecourse Ground	13,341	8,019
Avignon	Parc des Sports	17,518	17,518
Perpignan	Stade Gilbert Brutus	13,000	11,576
Limerick	Thomond Park	25,600	5,021

• Although the competition was officially co hosted by England and Wales, France and Ireland also hosted games.

Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea 2017

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Brisbane	Lang Park	52,500	40,033
Cairns	Barlow Park	16,700	9,216
Canberra	Canberra Stadium	25,011	12,293
Darwin	Marrara Oval	12,500	13,473
Melbourne	Melbourne Rectangular Stadium	30,050	22,724
Perth	Perth Oval	20,500	14,744
Sydney	Sydney Football Stadium	45,500	21,127
Townsville	Willows Sports Complex	26,500	7,732
Auckland	Mount Smart Stadium	25,000	30,003
Christchurch	Rugby League Park	18,000	12,130
Hamilton	Waikato Stadium	25,800	24,041
Wellington	Wellington Regional Stadium	34,500	12,713
Port Moresby	National Football Stadium	14,800	14,800

England 2021

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance
Manchester	Old Trafford	74,310	67,502
London	Ashburton Grove	60,704	40,489
Newcastle	St James’ Park	52,350	43,199
Leeds	Elland Road	37,792	28,113
Middlesbrough	Riverside Stadium	34,742	8,342
Coventry	Coventry Arena	32,753	10,276
Sheffield	Bramall Lane	32,050	18,760
Bolton	Bolton Stadium	28,723	23,648
Hull	Hull City Stadium	25,586	7,080
Wigan	Wigan Athletic Stadium	25,138	23,179
Huddersfield	Kirklees Stadium	24,121	24,375
Leeds	Headingley Stadium	19,700	13,366
St Helens	Langtree Park	18,000	14,137
Doncaster	Keepmoat Stadium	15,231	6,968
Warrington	Halliwell Jones Stadium	15,200	14,965
Leigh	Leigh Sports Village	12,000	6,057
Newcastle	Kingston Park	10,200	6,736

Venues by nation

Australia

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance	Years
Brisbane	Brisbane Cricket Ground	37,478	29,636	1957
Sydney	Sydney Cricket Ground	48,000	62,256	1957, 1968 , 1975, 1977
Brisbane	Lang Park	52,500	50,599	1968, 1975, 1977, 1985–88, 1989–92, 2008, 2017
Sydney	Sydney Football Stadium	45,500	34,157	1985–88, 2008, 2017
Wagga Wagga	Eric Weissel Oval	10,000	11,685	1985–88
Parkes	Pioneer Oval	12,000	12,384	1989–92
Townsville	Townsville Sports Reserve	6,500	12,470	1989–92
Canberra	Canberra Stadium	25,011	12,293	2008, 2017
Gold Coast	Robina Stadium	27,690	11,278	2008
Gosford	Central Coast Stadium	20,059	9,720	2008
Melbourne	Docklands Stadium	56,347	36,297	2008
Newcastle	Newcastle International Sports Centre	30,000	15,145	2008
Rockhampton	Browne Park	8,000	5,942	2008
Sydney	Parramatta Stadium	20,741	8,602	2008
Sydney	Penrith Stadium	22,500	11,787	2008
Townsville	Willows Sports Complex	26,500	16,239	2008, 2017
Wollongong	Wollongong Showground	23,750	9,213	2008
Cairns	Barlow Park	16,700	9,216	2017
Darwin	Marrara Oval	12,500	13,473	2017
Melbourne	Melbourne Rectangular Stadium	30,050	22,724	2017
Perth	Perth Oval	20,500	14,744	2017

England

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance	Years
Bradford	Odsal Stadium	26,019	33,023	1960, 1970, 1975
Leeds	Headingley	19,700	22,209	1960, 1970, 1975 *, 1985–88, 1989–92, 1995, 2000, 2013, 2021
Swinton	Station Road	15,000	22,923	1960, 1970
Wigan	Central Park	18,000	26,263	1960, 1970, 1975, 1985–88, 1989–92, 1995
Castleford	Wheldon Road	10,500	8,958	1970, 2000
Hull	The Boulevard	10,500	5,250	1970, 1989–92, 1995, 2000
Salford	The Willows	11,363	2,247	1975
Warrington	Wilderspool Stadium	9,200	8,083	1975, 1995
London	Wembley Stadium (1923)	82,000	73,631	1989–92, 1995
Leeds	Elland Road	37,792	32,500	1989–92, 2021
Gateshead	Gateshead International Stadium	11,800	9,181	1995, 2000
Huddersfield	Kirklees Stadium	24,121	24,375	1995, 2000, 2013, 2021
Keighley	Cougar Park	7,800	4,845	1995
Manchester	Old Trafford	74,310	74,468	1995, 2000, 2013 , 2021
St. Helens	Knowsley Road	17,500	8,679	1995, 2000
Bolton	Bolton Stadium	28,723	23,648	2000, 2021
Gloucester	Kingsholm Stadium	16,115	2,496	2000
Hull	Craven Park	12,225	7,481	2000
London	Twickenham Stadium	82,000	33,758	2000
Reading	Madejski Stadium	24,161	3,982	2000
Watford	Vicarage Road	22,220	5,404	2000
Widnes	Halton Stadium	13,350	5,211	2000
Workington	Derwent Park	10,000	7,630	2000, 2013
Bristol	Memorial Stadium	11,000	7,247	2013
Halifax	The Shay	10,401	10,266	2013
Hull	Hull City Stadium	25,586	25,114	2013, 2021
Leigh	Leigh Sports Village	12,000	10,554	2013, 2021
London	Wembley Stadium	90,000	67,545	2013
Salford	City of Salford Stadium	12,000	6,041	2013
St. Helens	Langtree Park	18,000	14,137	2013, 2021
Warrington	Halliwell Jones Stadium	15,300	14,965	2013, 2021
Wigan	Wigan Athletic Stadium	25,138	23,179	2013, 2021
London	Ashburton Grove	60,704	40,489	2021
Newcastle	St James' Park	52,350	43,199	2021
Middlesbrough	Riverside Stadium	34,742	8,342	2021
Coventry	Coventry Arena	32,753	10,276	2021
Sheffield	Bramall Lane	32,050	18,760	2021
Doncaster	Keepmoat Stadium	15,231	6,968	2021
Newcastle	Kingston Park	10,200	6,736	2021

* 1975 had no official World Cup Final. Instead a special challenge match was played.

France

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance	Years
Paris	Parc des Princes	48,229	30,368	1954 , 1972
Lyon	Stade de Gerland	25,000	10,250	1954, 1972
Bordeaux	Stade Chaban Delmas	34,462	14,000	1954, 1975
Marseille	Stade Vélodrome	67,394	20,748	1954, 1972, 1975
Nantes	Stade Marcel Saupin	1,880	13,000	1954
Toulouse	Stadium Municipal	33,150	37,471	1954, 1972, 1975, 2000
Grenoble	Stade Lesdiguières	12,000	5,321	1972
Pau	Stade du Hameau	14,588	7,500	1972
Perpignan	Stade Gilbert Brutus	13,000	11,576	1972, 1975, 1985–88, 1989–92, 2013
Avignon	Parc des Sports	17,518	17,518	1985–88, 2013
Carcassonne	Stade Albert Domec	10,000	10,288	1985–88, 1989–92, 2000
Albi	Stadium Municipal d'Albi	13,058	7,969	2000
Paris	Stade Sébastien Charléty	20,000	7,498	2000

Ireland

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance	Years
Dublin	Tolka Park	5,700	1,782	2000
Limerick	Thomond Park	25,600	5,021	2013

New Zealand

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance	Years
Auckland	Carlaw Park	17,000	18,000	1968, 1975, 1977, 1985–88
Christchurch	Addington Showground*	18,000	12,130	1975, 1977, 1985–88, 1989–92, 2017
Auckland	Eden Park	50,000	47,363	1985–88
Christchurch	Queen Elizabeth II Park	25,000	3,133	1989–92
Auckland	Mount Smart Stadium	25,000	30,003	1989–92, 2017
Hamilton	Waikato Stadium	25,800	24,041	2017
Wellington	Wellington Regional Stadium	34,500	12,713	2017

• Addington Showgrounds became Rugby League Park in 1997

Northern Ireland

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance	Years
Belfast	Windsor Park	18,500	3,207	2000

Papua New Guinea

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance	Years
Port Moresby	National Football Stadium*	14,800	17,000	1985–88, 1989–92, 2017
Goroka	Danny Leahy Oval	13,000	11,485	1989–92

• Lloyd Robson Oval was redeveloped into PNG's National Football Stadium in 2015.

Scotland

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance	Years
Edinburgh	Tynecastle Stadium	19,852	1,579	2000
Glasgow	Firhill Stadium	10,102	2,008	2000

Wales

City	Stadium	Capacity	Highest Attendance	Years
Swansea	St Helens Rugby Ground	4,500	11,112	1975
Cardiff	Ninian Park	21,508	10,250	1995
Swansea	Vetch Field	11,475	15,385	1995
Cardiff	Millennium Stadium	73,931	45,052	2000, 2013
Llanelli	Stradey Park	10,800	1,497	2000
Wrexham	Racecourse Ground	13,341	8,019	2000, 2013
Neath	The Gnoll	6,000	3,270	2013

See also

• Sports portal

• Rugby League World Cup finals
• List of rugby league competitions
• List of rugby league stadiums by capacity

References

1. World Cup Venues at Rugby League Project

Further reading

• Andrews, Malcolm & Butcher, Tim (2009). The Rugby League World Cup. League Publications. ISBN   978-1-901347-20-3.

External links

• Official Rugby League World Cup Website
• Rugby League International Federation