The World Cup co-hosts for whom rugby league is a national obsession
World Cup co-hosts Papua New Guinea's love of rugby league manifests itself in the Kumuls and the Orchids national teams, two badges of hope and unity for the island.
Key points
- Papua New Guinea co-hosts four Rugby League World Cup matches in Port Moresby this month alongside Australia and New Zealand.
- Rugby league is a unifying force in PNG, a country with over 800 languages and tribal conflict, where fans are famously loud and passionate.
- PNG's men's team, the Kumuls, and women's team, the Orchids, will play at the Santos National Football Stadium, which holds just under 15,000.
Papua New Guinea is co-hosting the Rugby League World Cup with Australia and New Zealand, and the capital Port Moresby will stage four matches this month. The sport is a national obsession in PNG, where fans are known for their intense passion and knowledge of the game.
The Kumuls, PNG's men's national team, and the Orchids, the women's side, will play at the Santos National Football Stadium, which has a capacity of just under 15,000. The tournament highlights rugby league's deep roots in the country, dating back to its introduction by Australian miners in the 1930s.
A unifying force
Rugby league serves as a powerful symbol of unity in a nation often divided by tribal fighting and home to more than 800 languages. Fans' fervor can sometimes boil over, with police having fired tear gas at crowds in the past, but the sport generally brings people together.
Children play with makeshift balls on any available patch of land, and players like Edwin Ipape recall saving lunch money to buy a ball. Ipape, now a hooker for Leigh Leopards in Super League, said rugby league 'has given me pretty much everything.'
It sounds like 30,000
— Liam Horne
Players and pathways
The Kumuls feature players based in Australia and England, including second-generation Papuans like Jacob Alick-Weincke. The women's team has been boosted by star Elsie Albert, who said a 2019 win over England in Port Moresby showed that women can do what men can do.
A new NRL team, the PNG Chiefs, will be based on the island from 2028, with recruitment already underway. Several Papuan players at London Broncos, including Championship player of the year Gairo Voro, have been signed for the future.
