Australia and New Zealand take rugby league back to the future in epic World Cup opener
- The Sydney Football Stadium is as modern a football temple as you'll find, but Australia's opening match in the 2026 Rugby League World Cup was like a trip back in time.
- The game against New Zealand was in the shadow of the Sydney Cricket Ground, where the Kangaroos have played ever since rugby league arrived in Australia in 1908.
- It remains the site of so many sepia-toned memories of furious, blood-and-thunder battles because Test matches were the biggest, best and most brutal spectacles the game had to offer.
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- The Sydney Football Stadium is as modern a football temple as you'll find, but Australia's opening match in the 2026 Rugby League World Cup was like a trip back in time.
- The game against New Zealand was in the shadow of the Sydney Cricket Ground, where the Kangaroos have played ever since rugby league arrived in Australia in 1908.
- It remains the site of so many sepia-toned memories of furious, blood-and-thunder battles because Test matches were the biggest, best and most brutal spectacles the game had to offer.
Sources: ABC Australia