Wales at the Rugby League World Cup

About Wales in rugby league

Known as the Dragons, Wales first appeared at the World Cup in 1975 — the first tournament in which the British Isles were represented by separate home nations rather than one combined Great Britain side — and finished third in that debut edition. Wales's strongest World Cup years came in 1995 and 2000, when the Dragons reached the semi-finals on both occasions, losing to England and Australia respectively; more recent campaigns have been considerably harder, including a winless 2013 tournament that featured a defeat to World Cup debutants Italy, and a 13th-place finish out of 14 teams in 2017 after conceding 156 points across three group matches. Wales also co-hosted the 2013 World Cup, staging matches including the tournament opener at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium. Rhys Williams holds the team's caps and tries records (33 caps, 22 tries), while Iestyn Harris — who also played for and captained Great Britain — remains the Dragons' all-time leading points-scorer with 165. Wales's modern squads, like most of the World Cup's second tier, draw heavily on Wales-qualified players based in England's Super League and Australia's NRL rather than a large domestic playing base. Wales is run by the independent Wales Rugby League governing body, based in Cardiff, and since July 2024 all of the country's national rugby league sides have played their home fixtures at the Gnoll in Neath. John Kear coached the Dragons for over a decade, from 2014 to 2025, before handing over to Paul Berry; as of December 2025 Wales sat 13th in the IRL Men's World Rankings, and finished 13th of 16 teams in their most recent World Cup appearance, 2021.

Sources

• Wales national rugby league team — Wikipedia