# 2008 Festival of World Cups

The 2008 Festival of World Cups was a series of rugby league world cups held in Australia during 2008. The festival was staged in concurrence with the 2008 Men's Rugby League World Cup also in Australia and coincided with the centenary of rugby league celebrations in Australia.
The festival contained world cups for Student, Police, Women, Defence and Wheelchair teams. The Universities tournament officially started the Festival in July ahead of the remaining competitions in October.
Colin Love, the Rugby League World Cup 2008 Tournament Director and RLIF Chairman, stated "The festival highlights how the World Cup is embracing the Rugby League community and acknowledging its wide-ranging affiliates", adding "It’s a great opportunity to showcase the broad appeal of the game internationally".

## Festival schedule

The Festival of World Cups included:
| Event | Dates | Areas/Venues | Winner |
| University | 4 July - 19 July 2008 | Griffith University and other Brisbane venues; Langlands Park (Final) | Australia |
| Men | 25 October - 22 November 2008 | Twelve venues across four Australian states; Suncorp Stadium (Final) | New Zealand |
| Police | 2 November - 15 November 2008 | Stockland Park, Sunshine Coast; Suncorp Stadium (Final) | Fiji |
| Women | 2 November - 15 November 2008 | Stockland Park, Sunshine Coast; Suncorp Stadium (Final) | New Zealand |
| Defence | 5 November - 16 November 2008 | Penrith, Townsville; Sydney Football Stadium (Final) | Great Britain |
| Wheelchair | 7 November - 17 November 2008 | Sydney metropolitan area | England |

## University

The seventh University Rugby League World Cup was held in July, being the first of the six world cups to be held. The previous tournament was held in 2005 and won by New Zealand. The eight countries that took part were Australia, New Zealand, England, Greece, Scotland, Wales, France and Ireland. Australia defeated England in the final, while Greece won the plate competition.
* 19 July 2008
| Australian Universities | 26 - 16 | England Students |
* Langlands Park, Brisbane

## Men

The thirteenth Rugby League World Cup was held throughout October and November. Ten teams took part. Defending Champions and hosts Australia, New Zealand, England, France and Papua New Guinea all qualified automatically, while Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, Ireland and Scotland all qualified through tournaments in 2006 and 2007. The final was held at Suncorp Stadium on 22 November.
* 22 November 2008
| New Zealand | 34 - 20 | Australia |
* Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

## Police

The inaugural International Police Rugby League World Cup was held during November alongside the Women's Rugby League World Cup at Stockland Park. The final was held as a curtain raiser to the first semi-final of the men's World Cup at Suncorp Stadium. AMP sponsored the event with organisers hoping would go towards the formation of an International Police Rugby League Federation.
Group stage :
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | +/− | Pts |
| New Zealand | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 120 | 36 | +84 | 8 |
| Fiji | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 170 | 50 | +120 | 6 |
| Australia | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 80 | 76 | +4 | 4 |
| Great Britain | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 42 | 126 | -84 | 2 |
| Papua New Guinea | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 40 | 164 | -124 | 0 |
Source:
* 15 November 2008
| Australia | 22 - 2 | Great Britain |
* Stockland Park, Sunshine Coast
* 15 November 2008
| Fiji Police | 20 - 12 | New Zealand Police |
* Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

## Women

The third Women's Rugby League World Cup was held at Stockland Park alongside the Police World Cup. Eight teams took part including defending champions New Zealand. The final was held at Suncorp Stadium on 15 November.
* 15 November 2008
| Australia | 0 - 34 | New Zealand |
| | Report | |
* Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

## Defence

The inaugural Defence Forces World Cup was held in Sydney with the final played at the Sydney Football Stadium as a curtain raiser to the second Semi Final of the Men's tournament. Five defence forces took part, New Zealand, Australia, Great Britain, Papua New Guinea and the Cook Islands.
Group stage :
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | +/− | Pts |
| Great Britain | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 196 | 68 | +128 | 8 |
| Australia | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 110 | 63 | +47 | 6 |
| New Zealand | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 153 | 80 | +73 | 4 |
| Cook Islands | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 106 | 128 | -22 | 2 |
| Papua New Guinea | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 22 | 248 | -226 | 0 |
Source:
* 15 November 2008
| New Zealand | 32 - 10 | Cook Islands |
* CUA Stadium, Penrith
* 16 November 2008
| Australian Defence Forces | 16 - 26 | Great Britain Armed Forces |
| | Report | |
* Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney

## Wheelchair

Four teams took part in the inaugural Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup which was held at indoor venues in Sydney. The four teams were France, Australia, England and a Barbarians scratch team which replaced New Zealand who withdrew shortly before the start of the tournament.

### Group stage

Group stage :
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | +/− | Pts |
| England | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 134 | 48 | +86 | 6 |
| France | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 170 | 40 | +130 | 4 |
| Australia | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 128 | 78 | +50 | 2 |
| Barbarians | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 270 | –266 | 0 |

#### Results

    7 November: Sydney Academy of Sport, Narrabeen
       England 34 – 26 Australia
       Barbarians 0 – 108 France
    10 November: Betts Stadium, Mount Druitt
       England 74 – 4 Barbarians
       Australia 14 – 44 France
    12 November: Sydney Academy of Sport, Narrabeen
       Australia 88 – 0 Barbarians
       France 18 – 26 England
Source:

### Finals

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final | Final |
| 1 | England | 66 | | | |
| 4 | Barbarians | 0 | | | |
| 4 | Barbarians | 0 | England | England | 44 |
| | | | Australia | Australia | 12 |
| 3 | Australia | 22 | Australia | Australia | 12 |
| 2 | France | 20 | 3rd/4th play-off | 3rd/4th play-off | 3rd/4th play-off |
| | | | France | France | 52 |
| | | | Barbarians | Barbarians | 0 |
Source:
* 17 November 2008
| England | 44 – 12 | Australia |
| | Report | |
* Betts Stadium, Mount Druitt, Sydney