2008 Rugby League World Cup

13th Rugby League World Cup tournament May 2014 May 2014 2008 Rugby League World Cup 2008_rugby.png 160px 2008 World Cup logo 10 Australia New Zealand 1 18 293442 890 156 AUS Johnathan Thurston AUS Billy Slater (7 tries) Rugby League World Cup 2000 2013 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 sport's history. Originally there was a plan to hold a World Cup in Australia in 2004,https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_league/world_cup_2000/1034927.stm McDonald defends World Cup BBC 12 November 2008 22 November 2000 London 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.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/2370497/Lewis-backs-Australia-for-World-Cup.html Lewis backs Australia for World Cup – Telegraph The Daily Telegraph John Whalley 1 January 2004 12 November 2008 Londonmedic For the World Cup to regain some credibility, the number of teams was reduced to ten with Australia, England, France, Papua 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. Format Qualification 2008 Rugby League World Cup qualifying The hosts, Australia, were given automatic entry into the World Cup, along with New Zealand, England, France and Papua New Guinea. The five remaining places in the World Cup were determined by qualification rounds. Two European rounds and Pacific, Atlantic and Repêchage rounds were scheduled. Tonga and Fiji became the first two nations to qualify after Tonga defeated Samoa 18–10 in Leeds on 22 October, forcing Samoa to enter the repêchage. In the European Group Two, Ireland drew 16–16 with Lebanon to ensure qualification, while Lebanon were forced to enter the repêchage. The final automatic place went to Scotland, who defeated Wales 37–32 on aggregate after two legs. Wales then faced Lebanon in the repêchage semi-final, where they lost in a surprise 50–26 defeat, to knock them out of World Cup Qualifying. Lebanon then faced Samoa, who beat USA 42–10 in the first semi-final, on 14 November for the final qualifying position. The game was won by Samoa, 38–16, and so they booked the tenth and final place.http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/sport/nrl/story/0,26746,22762994-5003409,00.html Samoa beats Lebanon to be last team in league world cup 14 November 2007 Australian Associated Press 11 December 2009October 2026 medicmedic Many qualification matches were broadcast live by Sky Sports in the United Kingdom and New Zealand, whilst BigPondTV broadcast matches online for other fans around the world.ARL – Tickets On Sale https://web.archive.org/web/20080325012015/http://www.rugbyleague.com.au/arl/news/article.php?id=1131 25 March 2008 TeamNicknameCoachCaptainRLIF Rank AustraliaThe KangaroosRicky StuartDarren Lockyer 1EnglandThe LionsTony SmithJamie Peacock 3FijiThe BatiJoe DakuitogaWes Naiqama 6FranceLes ChanticleersJohn MonieJerome Guisset 5IrelandThe WolfhoundsAndy KellyScott Grix 9NZThe KiwisStephen KearneyNathan Cayless 2Papua New GuineaThe KumulsAdrian LamJohn Wilshere 7SamoaToa SamoaJohn AcklandNigel Vagana 12ScotlandThe BraveheartsSteve McCormackDanny Brough 11TongaMate Ma'a TongaJim DymockLopini Paea4 Draw The draw, after being confirmed by the RLIF on 19 April 2007, involved three groups. The first group was made up of four teams; Australia, England, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. Whilst the other two groups involved three teams each. The semi finals were made up of the first three teams in the first group and the winner of a playoff between the winners of the second and third groups. The draw was put into doubt after the Papua New Guinea team claimed that it was unfair to them and threatened to boycott the tournament should it not be changed. Marcus Bai, former Papua New Guinean winger and captain, said:Papua New Guinea Threaten Boycott They have to change it and if they don't, we won't come. We will ring up the other island nations and teams elsewhere who don't qualify and we can have our own competition. They have shown no respect for our country or for our efforts to promote the game up there. Fortunately for the tournament, this separate island competition did not eventuate. Papua New Guinea still remained upset with the draw, seeing it as a huge challenge but one which would have seen them be rewarded if they had won. The draw was finalised on 4 October 2007.NRL RLWC08 – Schedule Finalised http://www.nrl.com/News/Latest/NewsArticle/tabid/76/NewsId/7314/Default.aspx 4 October 2007 4 October 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20080214132438/http://www.nrl.com/News/Latest/NewsArticle/tabid/76/NewsId/7314/Default.aspx 14 February 2008 dead dmy-all The first match took place in Townsville between England and Papua New Guinea, although the official opening ceremony of the competition occurred before the Australia and New Zealand match the following day in Sydney.http://www.rlwc08.com/schedule/ Rugby League World Cup 2008 Rlwc08.com 12 November 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20081202033803/http://www.rlwc08.com/schedule/ 2 December 2008 dead dmy-all The final took place at Lang Park (Suncorp Stadium) in Brisbane. Teams received 2 points for a win, and 1-point for a draw. This meant that, unlike in the Australasian National Rugby League, there was no "golden point" rule enforced. In group stages, if two teams had the same number of points then positions were determined on points difference, the number of points scored minus the number of points conceded. After group matches were completed, a match featuring the second placed teams in Group B and Group C took place with the winner receiving 7th place. Similarly the third placed teams in Group B and Group C played off for 9th place. It was believed that these results were to be taken into account in the 2009 RLIF World Rankings.November 2008 Squads 2008 Rugby League World Cup squads Each nation competing in the tournament named 24-man squads in the weeks prior to the group stage commencing.Two More Vodafone Warriors in World Cup Teams https://web.archive.org/web/20250119102849/http://warriors.sitesuite.ws/plugins/newsfeed.cgi?rm=content&plugin_data_id=25165 19 January 2025 NZ Warriors, 8 October 2008.Fiji, Ireland, Samoa, Scotland and Tonga sides https://web.archive.org/web/20081011103133/http://www.rlwc08.com/news/news/archive/2008/10/08/fiji-ireland-samoa-scotland-and-tonga-sides.aspx 11 October 2008 Official RLWC08 site, 8 October 2008. Venues Due to Rugby League World Cup rules prohibiting the use of commercial venue names, all venues were known by their non-commercial names, e.g. Suncorp Stadium was known as Lang Park during the tournament. Lang Park would also host the World Cup final. Brisbane Melbourne Sydney Gold Coast Lang Park Docklands Stadium Sydney Football Stadium Robina Stadium Capacity: 52,500 Capacity: 56,347 Capacity: 42,500 Capacity: 27,400 200px 200px 200px 200px Townsville Newcastle Canberra Wollongong Willows Sports Complex Newcastle International Sports Centre Canberra Stadium Wollongong Showground Capacity: 26,500 Capacity: 26,126 Capacity: 25,011 Capacity: 23,000 200px 200px 200px 200px Sydney Sydney Gosford Rockhampton Penrith Stadium Parramatta Stadium Central Coast Stadium Browne Park Capacity: 22,500 Capacity: 21,500 Capacity: 20,059 Capacity: 8,000 200px 200px 200px 200pxcenter Australia 400 Australia -19.25 146.81 Townsville left Australia -26.46 153.03 Brisbane left Australia -37.81 144.96 Melbourne right Australia -23.375 150.511667 Rockhampton left Australia -28.016667 153.4 Gold Coast belowcenter New South Wales 400 Australia -29.40 146.50 Sydney left Australia -35.30 139.50 Canberra left Australia -27 148 Newcastle left Australia -32 145 Wollongong left Australia -28.5 147 Gosford right Officiating Six referees from four countries controlled matches in the tournament. These four nations also provided touch judges while England and Australia provided the video referees.http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,24530732-10389,00.html England Cup side not afraid of the grapple tackle 21 October 2008 23 October 2008 news.com.au Steve Ricketts https://web.archive.org/web/20081023150730/http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0%2C23739%2C24530732-10389%2C00.html 23 October 2008 dead http://www.sportfocus.com/newspub/story.cfm?ID=30623 RFL trio head to the Rugby League World Cup 8 October 2008 23 October 2008 sportfocus.com In support of the Australian National Breast Cancer Foundation, the referees wore pastel pink shirts while officiating matches to raise awareness. The shirts, which carried the NBCF logo on the collar, were signed by the team captains at each World Cup game and were later auctioned off with the proceeds going to the NBCF. http://www.rlwc08.com/news/news/archive/2008/07/18/referees-in-pink-for-charity.aspx Referees in pink for charity 18 July 2008 28 October 2008 Rugby League International Federation https://web.archive.org/web/20081201173402/http://www.rlwc08.com/news/news/archive/2008/07/18/referees-in-pink-for-charity.aspx 1 December 2008 dead dmy-all Referees FRA Thierry Alibert (France) AUS Tony Archer (Australia) ENG Steve Ganson (England) AUS Shayne Hayne (Australia) ENG Ashley Klein (England) NZL Leon Williamson (New Zealand) Video referees AUS Steve Clark (Australia) AUS Phil Cooley (Australia) ENG Steve Ganson (England) ENG Ashley Klein (England) AUS Paul Simpkins (Australia) Touch judges NZL Adam Burns (New Zealand) AUS Steve Chiddy (Australia) ENG James Child (England) AUS Tony De Las Hera (Australia) AUS Paul Holland (Australia) FRA Jose Perrara (France) AUS Bernard Sutton (Australia) AUS Gerard Sutton (Australia) AUS Russell Turner (Australia) Opening ceremony right|thumb|The 2008 World Cup's opening ceremonyOn Sunday night, 26 October, the Sydney Football Stadium hosted the Opening Ceremony of the World Cup. It started with Greg Inglis reciting a speech about "Playing Fair". Following Inglis' speech there was an Aboriginal Smoking ceremony to welcome all the athletes and participants. This included a rather large sized Rainbow Serpent which represented the Aboriginal Dreamtime. The last part of the ceremony involved a performance of the Rugby League World Cup anthem "Hero" by Natalie Bassingthwaighte. A curtain raiser to the Australia vs. New Zealand match included an Indigenous Australian squad playing against New Zealand Māori which featured several prominent NRL players and rising stars, including Chris Sandow, Wairangi Koopu, Preston Campbell, Sam Thaiday, Shaun Kenny-Dowall and Carl Webb. As part of the official opening of the World Cup on 26 October, an exhibition game was played between an Aboriginal selection and a New Zealand Māori side.Indigenous Dreamtime team named https://web.archive.org/web/20100101120935/http://www.rlwc08.com/news/news/archive/2008/10/09/indigenous-dreamtime-team-named.aspx 1 January 2010 @ Official RLWC08 site, 11 October 2008. Welcome to Country Match 26 October 2008 Indigenous Dreamtime 23px 34 – 26 Report1st: 16 - 82nd: 18 - 18 New Zealand Māori New Zealand Māori Tries:Rod Jensen (33', 53') 2Rhys Wesser (22', 71') 2Justin Carney (18') 1Yileen Gordon (80') 1Goals:Jamie Soward 4/5(20', 34', 54', 72')Derrick Watkins 1/1(80')Field Goals:Jamie Soward 0/1 Tries:Sam McKendry (2') 1Shaun Kenny-Dowall (25') 1Chase Stanley (48') 1Jordan Rapana (58') 1Arana Taumata (67') 1Goals:Bronx Goodwin 2/4(49', 69')Chase Stanley 1/1(59') Sydney Football Stadium Tony Archer Team lists:FB1 Rhys WesserWG2 Justin CarneyCE3 Maurice BlairCE4 Jamal IdrisWG5 Ty WilliamsFE6 Jamie SowardHB7 Preston Campbell (c)PR8 Carl WebbHK9Ian LaceyPR17 Peter JensenSR11 Daine LaurieSR12 Derrick WatkinsLK13 Dean WiddersInterchange:IC14 Chris SandowIC15 Rod JensenIC16 Yileen GordonIC10 George RoseIC18 Dennis MoranCoach: Neil HenryFB1 Bronx GoodwinWG2 Jordan RapanaCE3 Chase StanleyCE4 Karl JohnsonWG5 Shaun Kenny-DowallFE14 Charlie HerekotukutukuHB7 Rangi ChasePR8 Weller HaurakiHK9 Ben Ellis (c)PR10 Sam McKendrySR11 Craig SmithSR12 Wairangi KoopuLK13 Lee Te MaariInterchange:IC6 Arana TaumataIC15 Hep CahillIC16 Chance BunceIC17 James TamouIC18 Kevin ProctorCoach:Luke Goodwin Group stage The 2008 Rugby League World Cup's eighteen matches were played during October and November in various locations throughout the east coast of Australia. The tournament's teams were divided into three pool groups. The teams finishing highest amongst those groups progressed to the play-offs. All teams from group A (shaded in green) with the exception of the bottom qualifying team progressed to the semi-finals, the other two groups the top finisher progressed to a playoff match, in which the winner would qualify to the semi-finals. Group A 2008 Rugby League World Cup Group A Standings ENGvPNG AUSvNZL NZLvPNG AUSvENG ENGvNZL AUSvPNG Group B 2008 Rugby League World Cup Group B Standings FRAvSCO FIJvFRA SCOvFIJ Group C 2008 Rugby League World Cup Group C Standings TONvIRE SAMvTON IREvSAM Knockout stage 2008 Rugby League World Cup knockout stage The top three teams from pool A advanced to the semi-finals, while the top teams from pools B and C played off in the qualifying final to decide the fourth spot in the semi-finals. Bracket 7th place play-off SCOvTON 9th place play-off FRAvSAM Quarter-final FIJvIRE Semi-finals NZLvENG AUSvFIJ Final: Australia vs New Zealand 2008 Rugby League World Cup final Final Statistics Try scorers 7 tries AUS Billy Slater 6 tries AUS Greg Inglis 5 tries FIJ Akuila Uate IRE rugby league Damien Blanch 4 tries 13em AUS Joel Monaghan AUS David Williams NZL Lance Hohaia NZL Jerome Ropati NZL Manu Vatuvei 3 tries 13em AUS Scott Prince AUS Johnathan Thurston ENG Martin Gleeson ENG Lee Smith FIJ Jarryd Hayne FRA Jérôme Guisset IRE rugby league Pat Richards NZL Sam Perrett TON Michael Jennings 2 tries 13em AUS Israel Folau AUS Anthony Laffranchi AUS Darren Lockyer AUS Brent Tate ENG Rob Burrow ENG Ade Gardner ENG Danny McGuire FIJ Jayson Bukuya FIJ Semi Tadulala FRA John Wilson NZL Adam Blair NZL Simon Mannering NZL Benji Marshall PNG George Keppa SAM George Carmont SAM Francis Meli SAM Misi Taulapapa SAM Ben Te'o SAM Matt Utai SAM Nigel Vagana SCO Jon Steel SCO Oliver Wilkes TON Etuate Uaisele 1 try 13em AUS Paul Gallen AUS Anthony Tupou ENG Jamie Peacock ENG Mickey Higham ENG James Roby FRA Christophe Moly FRA Sébastien Planas FRA Sébastien Raguin FRA Jared Taylor FIJ Iowane Divavesi FIJ Semisi Tora FIJ Wes Naiqama IRE rugby league Liam Finn IRE rugby league Simon Finnigan IRE rugby league Sean Gleeson IRE rugby league Scott Grix IRE rugby league Michael Platt NZL Greg Eastwood NZL David Fa'alogo NZL Nathan Fien NZL Bronson Harrison NZL Issac Luke NZL Sika Manu NZL Jason Nightingale PNG Paul Aiton PNG Jason Chan PNG Rod Griffin PNG Menzie Yere SAM Joseph Paulo SAM Frank Puletua SAM Ben Roberts SAM David Solomona SCO Paddy Coupar SCO Michael Robertson TON Tevita Leo-Latu TON Feleti Mateo TON Eddie Paea TON Fetuli Talanoa TON Esikeli Tonga TON Tony Williams Attendances DateMatchVenueLocationAttendance25 October 2008ENGPNGWillows Sports ComplexTownsville10,78026 October 2008AUSNZLSydney Football StadiumSydney34,15726 October 2008FRASCOCanberra StadiumCanberra9,28727 October 2008TONIREParramatta StadiumSydney6,16531 October 2008SAMTONPenrith StadiumSydney11,7871 November 2008FIJFRAWollongong ShowgroundWollongong9,2131 November 2008NZLPNGRobina StadiumGold Coast11,2782 November 2008AUSENGDocklands StadiumMelbourne36,2975 November 2008IRESAMParramatta StadiumSydney8,0675 November 2008SCOFIJCentral Coast StadiumGosford9,7208 November 2008SCOTONBrowne ParkRockhampton5,9428 November 2008ENGNZLNewcastle International Sports CentreNewcastle15,1459 November 2008AUSPNGWillows Sports ComplexTownsville16,2399 November 2008FRASAMPenrith StadiumSydney8,02810 November 2008FIJIRERobina StadiumGold Coast8,22415 November 2008NZLENGLang ParkBrisbane26,65916 November 2008AUSFIJSydney Football StadiumSydney15,85522 November 2008AUSNZLLang ParkBrisbane50,599 Critical reception thumb|right|New Zealand lifting the Paul Barrière Trophy after their victory in the final.Due to the generally poor response of the 2000 World Cup, there were several key criticisms of the tournament before any matches had kicked off.John-paul moloney and david jean The real deal or a standing joke? The Canberra Times Australia 28 October 2008 http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/local/news/general/the-real-deal-or-a-standing-joke/1343263.aspx?storypage=2 7 January 2010 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20111122052237/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/local/news/general/the-real-deal-or-a-standing-joke/1343263.aspx?storypage=2 22 November 2011 The RLIF were forced to defend the credibility of the tournament in October 2007 after New Zealand, one of the favourites for the competition, were heavily beaten in a Test match 58–0 in Wellington against Australia.Kiwi Pre-WC Criticism The Daily Telegraph http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22595095-5016312,00.html https://web.archive.org/web/20110811212119/http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/world-cup-under-fire/story-e6freyir-1111114654669 dead 11 August 2011 Another concern was whether there would be enough competitiveness throughout the ten teams, with some fans worried about the possibility of too many one-sided matches,Competitiveness Pre-WC Criticism which was a common sight in the Group Stages of the 2000 tournament.2000 WC Overview Ricky Stuart, coach of the Australian team, was reported to be so incensed by his team's defeat in the final that he verbally attacked Geoff Carr, the chief executive of Australian Rugby League, claiming that tournament organisers and match officials conspired to cause the Australian loss. https://web.archive.org/web/20090107135411/http://www.leaguehq.com.au/news/news/stuarts-sour-grapes/2008/11/23/1227375062521.html 7 January 2009 The next morning he had a chance meeting with Ashley Klein, who refereed the final, and Stuart Cummings, the Rugby Football League's director of match officials, at their hotel. He reportedly abused both officials in front of a number of witnesses, calling Klein a cheat, and behaved in an aggressive and physically intimidating manner. https://web.archive.org/web/20091009022226/http://www.leaguehq.com.au/news/news/now-stuart-stands-accused-of-calling-cup-final-referee-a-cheat/2008/11/24/1227491461252.html 9 October 2009 Stuart later apologised for his behaviour and resigned from his post.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_league/7745915.stm BBC News Stuart sorry for World Cup rant 28 November 2008 22 April 2010 The tournament proved a commercial success, delivering a profit of over 6.5 million and re-establishing the credibility of the competition.http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/four-nations-heads-global-calendar/story-e6frg7mo-1111118095280 Margie McDonald Four Nations heads global calendar 21 November 2008 11 October 2010 The AustralianOctober 2026 medicmedic Marketing Branding thumb|200px|right|Promotional video scene thumb|200px|right|Heroes Here 08 strapline The World Cup's "Heroes Here 08" promotional campaign was launched at the Sydney Opera House on 6 May 2008.http://www.rlwc08.com/news/news/archive/2008/05/06/heroes-08-campaign-launched.aspx Rugby League International Federation Media Release: Heroes 08 Campaign Launched 13 October 2008 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20080515062805/http://www.rlwc08.com/news/news/archive/2008/05/06/heroes-08-campaign-launched.aspx 15 May 2008 At the launch, Paul Kind, the World Cup Director of Marketing, explained, "Heroes Here 08 underlines that fact that the international game, and particularly this tournament, will bring out the best in every player who takes part. It will create heroes." Natalie Bassingthwaighte recorded an "Australian version" of the Mariah Carey song "Hero" which accompanied the "Heroes 08" promotional video and other World Cup advertising. The World Cup Opening Ceremony featured a live performance of the song by Bassingthwaighte. Filming of visuals for the promotional video began in Leeds during the worldwide ticketing launch for the event in November 2007. Advertising agency MJW, photographer Garry Heery, and production company Engine collaborated on a production that used digital animation and a dark set to depict players representing their country internationally. The Heroes campaign featured Mark Gasnier (Australia), Roy Asotasi (New Zealand), Rob Burrow (England), Keith Peters (PNG), Waisale Sukanaveita (Fiji), Nigel Vagana (Samoa), Jerome Guisset (France), Lee Paterson (Scotland), Stuart Littler (Ireland) and Lopini Paea (Tonga). Gasnier was later removed from some of the promotional material after he left the sport mid-season and was replaced by Darren Lockyer. The video also appeared in the video game Rugby League 2: World Cup Edition, which featured a world cup mode based on the event. Ticketing Tickets for Australian residents went on sale 7 November 2007 and internationally on 18 February.Pilbeam Tickets https://web.archive.org/web/20080719071939/http://www.pilbeamtheatre.com.au/worldcuprocky.html 19 July 2008 However tickets were not distributed until 3 March. Ticketek were announced as the official ticketing agency for the competition, selling tickets for all matches.Ticketek Tickets Ticketmaster and Pilbeam Theatre were selling tickets to the Telstra Dome and Browne Park matches respectively. The World Cup final sold out months in advance.http://www.leagueunlimited.com/article.php?newsid=16750 Samoa name World Cup Squad World Cup News 5 August 2008 League Unlimited 18 July 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20110717060051/http://www.leagueunlimited.com/article.php?newsid=16750 17 July 2011 dead dmy Sponsorship The Official Sponsors of the Rugby League World Cup 2008 were:http://www.rlwc08.com/sponsors/default.aspx Rugby League World Cup 2008 Partners 2008-10-27 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20080920054112/http://www.rlwc08.com/sponsors/default.aspx 20 September 2008 dmy Jetstar: Official Airline Foster's: Official Beer Bundaberg Rum: Official Spirit AAMI: Official referee sponsor Telstra: Official Telecommunications sponsor Gillette: Official Male products Holiday Inn: Official Accommodation Supplier Coca-Cola: Official Soft drink Harvey Norman: Official retailer Bic: Official stationery Broadcasting Television The 2008 World Cup had 26 separate television deals taking coverage to 127 countries and generating more than $20 million income.http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/national/national/sport/world-cup-goes-back-to-its-roots/1343170.aspx World Cup goes back to its roots – National News – National – Sport The Canberra Times 24 October 2008 12 November 2008 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20090630062442/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/national/national/sport/world-cup-goes-back-to-its-roots/1343170.aspx 30 June 2009 dmy A global television audience of 19.2 million made it the most widely broadcast event in the game's history.June 2024 medicmedic Channel 9 broadcast all Group A matches and the Knockout Stage matches in Australia. Fox Sports broadcast all Group B and C matches plus Ranking Stage matches live. In the United Kingdom, Sky Sports broadcast all matches live,https://www.rugbynetwork.net/main/s540/st135220.htm Rugby League World Cup on Television Rugby Network 23 October 2008 13 March 2026 meaning that all were shown in the morning and some as early as 06:00 amUK Broadcasting https://web.archive.org/web/20080928131410/http://www.rlwc08.com/broadcast/uk.aspx 28 September 2008 with highlights being shown on the BBC. Sky Sport showed all games live across New Zealand. Mai TV broadcast all matches live in Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Samoa, Cook Islands and the Solomon Islands.Pacific Broadcasting https://web.archive.org/web/20081021111014/http://www.rlwc08.com/broadcast/pi.aspx 21 October 2008 Orange Sport provided coverage of all matches live in France. Coverage of the competition also extended to countries not taking part. Showtime showed all matches live across the Middle East. G offered coverage of all games in many countries in Africa. Astro showed all matches in Malaysia, and ESPN360 showed all matches in the United States. In Brazil, some matches were broadcast by Bandsports. The only participating country with no television coverage of the matches was Tonga; the RLIF were hoping to secure a deal before the World Cup started, but this never happened. BigPondTV, an online television station, broadcast all matches live and also repeated matches. This service was available to everyone for free. Radio UK – BBC Radio 5 Live and its sister station BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra broadcast selected games. UK – some non-rights holders used Australian freelance reporter Tim Stackpool to report on games for UK broadcasters. An extensive archive can be heard here: RLWC Archive AUS – ABC and 2GB Radio broadcast selected games. NZ – Radio Sport broadcast the Kiwi's games, including the Kiwi's victory in the final. References 30em External links Official Website 2008 World Cup at rugbyleagueproject.org 2008 World Cup at 188-rugby-league.co.uk "World Cup Moved To End of Season", BBC website. Retrieved 4 May 2006. "RLIF Meeting", Rugby League European Federation website. Retrieved 8 May 2006 "McDonald defends World Cup", BBC website. Retrieved 6 May 2006. "Lewis backs Australia for World Cup"January 2025 medicmedic, telegraph.co.uk website. Retrieved 8 May 2006