1975 Rugby League World Cup

Data last verified: 11 August 2026.

1975 Rugby League World Cup ▾

1975 Rugby League World Cup result: Australia won the title. Hosted by No single host — matches played across Australia, England, France, New Zealand and Wales.

Full match archive (21 games)

Groups

World Cup Table

TeamPWDLPFPADiffPtsForm
Australia861119869+12913WWL
England852116784+8312WWW
Wales8305110130-206LWW
New Zealand8224121149-286DLL
France811640204-1643DLL
DateResultVenueAttendance
2 Mar 1975France 14–7 WalesStade Municipal, Toulouse, France7,563
16 Mar 1975England 20–2 FranceHeadingley, Leeds, England10,842
1 Jun 1975Australia 36–8 New ZealandLang Park, Brisbane, Australia12,000
10 Jun 1975England 7–12 WalesLang Park, Brisbane, Australia6,000
14 Jun 1975Australia 30–13 WalesSydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, Australia25,386
15 Jun 1975New Zealand 27–0 FranceAddington Showground, Christchurch, New Zealand2,500
21 Jun 1975New Zealand 17–17 EnglandCarlaw Park, Auckland, New Zealand12,000
22 Jun 1975Australia 26–6 FranceLang Park, Brisbane, Australia9,000
28 Jun 1975Australia 10–10 EnglandSydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, Australia33,858
28 Jun 1975New Zealand 13–8 WalesCarlaw Park, Auckland, New Zealand9,368
20 Sep 1975Wales 16–22 EnglandWilderspool Stadium, Warrington, England5,034
27 Sep 1975New Zealand 8–24 AustraliaCarlaw Park, Auckland, New Zealand18,000
11 Oct 1975France 2–48 EnglandStade du Parc Lescure, Bordeaux, France1,581
17 Oct 1975France 12–12 New ZealandStade Vélodrome, Marseille, France10,000
19 Oct 1975Wales 6–18 AustraliaSt Helen's Rugby Ground, Swansea, Wales11,112
25 Oct 1975England 27–12 New ZealandOdsal Stadium, Bradford, England5,507
26 Oct 1975France 2–41 AustraliaStade Gilbert Brutus, Perpignan, France10,440
1 Nov 1975England 16–13 AustraliaCentral Park, Wigan, England9,353
2 Nov 1975Wales 25–24 New ZealandSt Helen's Rugby Ground, Swansea, Wales2,645
6 Nov 1975Wales 23–2 FranceThe Willows, Salford, England2,247

Knockout stage

Challenge Match

DateResultVenueAttendance
12 Nov 1975England 0–25 AustraliaHeadingley, Leeds, England7,680

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How the title was decided

Full home-and-away round-robin among five teams across the whole of 1975 — the only edition where Great Britain didn't enter as a single unified team, splitting instead into England and Wales to take advantage of a strong crop of Welsh talent at the time.

Champion: Australia — Runner-up: England.

Tournament facts

HostNo single host — matches played across Australia, England, France, New Zealand and Wales
Dates2 March – 12 November 1975
Teams5
Games played20
Players used162
Average crowd10,224

Teams (5)

Australia, England, France, New Zealand, Wales

Context

The only World Cup with no single host nation: a full home-and-away round-robin spread across an entire calendar year, including one England 'home' fixture against Wales staged at Lang Park in Brisbane.

Uniquely, the 1975 World Cup had no single host and no traditional final: five teams played every other team home and away across the whole of 1975, with the table decided by competition points. Australia finished top (6 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss) ahead of England (5-2-1) to win the title. Australia did play a 25-0 "challenge" match against England at Headingley late in the year, but with the Kangaroos already mathematically certain of the championship, it wasn't classified as an official final. This was also the only World Cup in which Great Britain split into separate England and Wales sides rather than competing as one team. The format drew criticism even at the time for its lack of a single showcase occasion: the closing match at Headingley drew only 7,680 spectators, a steep fall from the 18,776 who had watched the same venue host the 1970 final, and reporting from the period describes England as showing only lukewarm enthusiasm for a tournament stretched out over eight months. Individual highlights included England winger Keith Fielding's four tries against France in Bordeaux, and hat-tricks from Australia's Ian Schubert and England's Ken Gill.

Sources

← 1972 Rugby League World Cup1977 Rugby League World Cup →

← All World Cups

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