Rugby League World Cup Betting

Venues

Who are The Favourites to Win?

Perhaps the lukewarm attitude to the tournament from some countries owes to Australia's dominance. The Aussies have won it on 11 occasions, including the past two editions, in 2013 and 2017. The only other countries to win the tournament are New Zealand (2008) and Great Britain (1954, 1960, 1972). 

This time Australia are the odds-on favourites to win it again, while they are followed in the betting by England and New Zealand. While Tonga, semi-finalists in 2017 and ranked third in the world, are given some chance of staging a minor upset, the odds compilers see it between three sides: Australia, England and New Zealand. 

Previous finals

• 2017: Australia 6-0 England 
• 2013: Australia 34-2 New Zealand
• 2008: New Zealand 34-20 Australia 
• 2000: Australia 40-12 New Zealand
• 1995: Australia 16-8 England

Group Stages

Men's Group A	Men's Group B	Men's Group C	Men's Group D
England	Australia	Ireland	Cook Islands
France	Fiji	Jamaica	Papa New Guinea
Greece	Italy	Lebanon	Wales
Samoa	Scotland	New Zealand	Tonga

The Knockout Stages 

Scoring

While a try is awarded five points in rugby union, it is awarded four points in rugby league. There is a similarly weighted incentive for tries, though, as a penalty is worth only two points in rugby league (as opposed to three in rugby union). Drop goals (or a field goal) are also less common in rugby league as they are only worth a single point (as opposed to three points in rugby union). This and other factors (discussed below) are designed to encourage a more fast-paced and free-flowing game. 

Team Sizes

There are 13 players in a rugby league team compared to 15 in rugby union. This makes for more space on the pitch and opportunities for line breaks and long runs with the ball.

Ball in Touch

A key difference between rugby league and rugby union is that when the ball goes into touch in rugby league, a scrum takes place rather than a line-out, as in rugby union. 

The Scrum

This brings us to another key "difference". The word "difference" is put in inverted commas, as while, according to the rulebook, scrums are contested in rugby league (like rugby union), the reality is that scrums (except on rare occasions) go uncontested in rugby league. The reasons are quite storied and beyond the limits of this article, but its consequence is that it creates faster restarts than rugby union and sees the ball stay in play for longer (on average for 50 minutes per game compared to 35 minutes in rugby union). 

Six Tackle Rule

Unlike rugby union, in which a team can go through endless phases of possession, an attacking team in rugby league only has a set of six chances to score. The referee will keep count of how many tackles have been made on attacking players during the move, and if a sixth tackle is made, possession is handed to the other team from the point where the sixth tackle was made. 

It is common practice for the attacking team to kick the ball forwards before the sixth tackle is made to force the opposing team to start their set of six chances from a deeper position on the pitch. 

Tackling

In rugby union, when an attacking player is tackled and taken to the ground, he is usually supported by fellow attackers who will join the ruck to protect the ball from the opposition. During this scenario, the defensive team can also tackle players in the ruck who do not have the ball. A maul situation can also happen when the ball is held off the ground and at least one player from each team, along with the ball-carrier, is bound together and on their feet. 

The rugby league is quite different as the ball carrier can't be supported and driven forward by his teammate in the tackle. Only the ball-carrier may be tackled, and a tackle is complete, for example, when the player is held by one or more opposing players and cannot make further progress or part with the ball. 

Betting Implication

Despite rules that promote a free-flowing game, this does not always translate into high-scoring affairs. The last Rugby World Cup final in 2017, for example, saw Australia beat England 6-0, whereas the 2013 final saw Australia beat New Zealand 34-2. Punters trying to make a prediction on the over and under points scored markets should bear this in mind and see if there is a pattern in the results throughout the tournament.