Italy at the Rugby League World Cup

About Italy in rugby league

Nicknamed the Azzurri, Italy's modern rugby league team is built almost entirely from players of Italian heritage based in Australia, following an earlier revival effort fronted by Italian-Australians Domenic Pezzano and John Benigni. Italy made their World Cup debut in 2013 after winning a qualifying tournament, and arrived with genuine momentum after beating England 15-14 in a pre-tournament warm-up match that was widely described at the time as an embarrassment for the host nation. Their best World Cup result came in that same 2013 debut, when the Azzurri beat co-hosts Wales in the group stage before being eliminated after a loss to Tonga. Italy returned for the 2017 World Cup, finishing third in their group, though results in the years since have been mixed — including a heavy 36-12 defeat to Ireland at the same 2017 tournament. Squad members over the years have included Dean Schifilliti, Mark Corvo, Luke Davico and dual-code international Orazio Arancio, part of a long tradition of NRL and Super League-adjacent players choosing Italy over their birth nations to represent their family heritage on the international stage. Italy did not qualify for either the 2021/2022 or 2026 World Cups, instead continuing to compete in the Rugby League European Championship against sides like Wales, Ireland and Scotland; as of December 2025 the Azzurri were ranked 17th in the IRL Men's World Rankings, comfortably the highest-ranked of the code's European 'heritage' nations still chasing a route back to the World Cup itself. The Azzurri's warm-up win over England ahead of the 2013 tournament is still cited by Italian rugby league followers as proof the squad could compete with far better-resourced nations on its day, even if that promise has not yet translated into a second World Cup qualification.

Sources

• Italy national rugby league team — Wikipedia