Australia ranked fourth for 2022 Rugby League World Cup

And those PI's are only interested in two sports, both beginning with "rugby"...

1. Tampa Bay won the Super Bowl so call them World Champs? No but American Football is played in Australia and some European countries so they could play an American Football World Cup. 2. AFL totally wins. Hands down. True but there is room for RL expansion in WA, SA, NT & Tas. 3. I lived in Adelaide and the only time there was a Rugby League story it was about a Sydney game abandoned by the referee after the crowd rioted and invaded the pitch. It is a matter of League vs Aussie Rules as it is a relatively small market with Soccer, Rugby, Hockey and other team sports. Rugby League is certainly in trouble.

So by your logic, because Tampa Bay won the Super Bowl it is correct to call them World Champions? The AFL GF was the most watched TV event of 2021, however, the SoO and NRL GF are very high rating too and sometimes even beat the AFL. But overall ratings wise and in crowd attendances, the AFL totally wins. Hands down. By millions. AFLW alone has 2.6 million viewers. As for your accusation of straw man arguments, I think you just answered your own question. I am well aware that not everybody who loves NRL hates AFL. But I live in country Queensland where people won't even engage in a conversation about AFL, yet the shopping centre is full of people wearing rugby league gear. I can't even find my kid a school where they play it. People really do have this weird idea that its a matter of League vs Aussie Rules. I have a friend who refuse to attend a Gold Coast Suns game because it might in some way adversely affect the Gold Coast Titans.

1. Who are these pure Rugby League straw fans? You probably have come across a few on here who hait all other codes of football or more likely just Aussie Rules but I enjoyed playing it and most AFL games are quite entertaining. 2. TV ratings suggest Rugby League is close to the most followed football code in Australia. I know quite a few Rules and Soccer fans/ex-players who are also fans of RL to varying degrees. 3. Pedro's definition of a world sport is valid. I prefer the the definition If you have a world cup it is a world sport. It doesn't have to be popular and wide spread.

It really is ironic that pure Rugby League fans can not only hate all other codes of football, but at the same time assume that fans of other codes are somehow threatened by Rugby League. It couldn't be further from the case! Either they couldn't give a fig about Rugby League or they are also fans to varying degrees. Anyone who thinks Rugby League is even close to the most followed football code in Australia is delusional. It never has been and never will be. TV ratings are one thing, but attendances prove which is by far the dominant sport and even soccer can show how many people will show up given the calibre of teams. Pedro might be adversarial in his language and stance, but his point is straightforward and correct = Rugby League is not a world sport. Neither are several Olympic sports, like handball, curling, breakdancing, ice hockey, surfing, and others, yet they have status.

The percentage of PI's in Australia is less than 1% (although as noted before higher in NSW and QLD). The percentage of African Americans in the US is around 13%, so what you say (and the last sentence) is correct.

It may be one of the many reasons why there are virtually no local players in the Storm and few Juniors in Melbourne as there is a lower percentage of PI's down there compared to NSW and QLD. Maori are of PI heritage, so the first sentence should be 'PI heritage included Maori'

Is that meant to be a put down? Don't you think it's great the PNG won something - don't think it happens often.

Meaningless. NEXT!

You cleary don't follow League if you think "NZ dominate the code". Just because they are on top of the world rankings, Australia would still beat them 8 out 10 times. The NSW origin side would hammer them more often than not.

.....our code isn't AFL, its Australian Rules Football. The code doesn't aspire to be anything other than domestic. Any international aspirations come from an insecure minority of the codes cringe while its lack of international status is its strength truth be told, when you consider the glut of generic mediocrity on offer courtesy of 'globalisation'. The old chestnut that tries to devalue the Australian game is simply the voice of envy, an ineffective weapon used by competing footy codes domestically. One analogy is that American homegrown sports are domestically sustainable with absolutely zero cringe attached. They really don't require our affirmation to love their brands. US sporting codes have not been thrust upon the world but have grown quite organically and while our code may grow humbly beyond these fatal shores in a similar fashion, this will not determine or detract from our support and love of the game.

......mmm, not so diverse when you consider 40% of the NRLs athletes are of Maori and PI heritage, while this is growing. I would be interested to know the percentage of these who are recruited from NZ and various PI nations? Either way, both Maoris and PIs have a great affinity for the Rugby codes which is reflected in the domestic leagues in this country.

Marngrook influenced the Australian game although the history wars courtesy of Geoffrey Blainey and others like him, have railed against this acknowledgement and any Irish influence given their conservative British persuasions. These history wars continue across our political, sporting and cultural landscape as we struggle to shed the narrative written for and by our imperialist colonisation. The AFL have now officially acknowledged Marngrook as one of a number of early foundations attributed to The Australian code while any appropriation on the part of 'Rugby' has been long overstated since 'Mother Albion' has long excelled at appropriation. I reiterate that League in this country no longer appears to be representative of a broad cultural diaspora, rather its dominated by Maoris and PI's despite South Sydneys cultural beginnings or Canterbury Bankstown's, the latter originally known as Irish Town.

......it is homogenous domestically I believe. The code is dominated by the Maori and PIs in this country. Im not referring to its global footprint. I like your American Basketball analogy but proportionally the African American diaspora is far greater and inherent of that nations culture compared to the Maori and PIs affinity historically to this country. A significant number of the NRLs players are recruited from NZ et al. That is very different to the American basketball, while League is dying here at the grass roots, the exception being Qld.

That's because AFL would have a tournament of one in an AFL 'world cup'. At least Aus, England, NZ and France are mainstayers with history dating back from 1954, and you have emerging nations like Tonga and other PI nations. While eligibility rules are fairly loose, have you seen some of the other sports? Movements between nations is very fluid these days, almost like changing clubs.

AFL does have a world cup. PNG won! :laughing:

Try read the article and understand how they came up with it.

how are the bookies odd with Oz in 4th? may be a good time to place a bet

Rugby League has a world cup and therefore has world rankings. Whether you think they're necessary or not is not important. The AFL don't need them because no one else plays it to an acceptable level and it has no bearing on what RL need.

I'm tempted to call BS on this, but I'd like to see the mathematics behind it. As far as I can tell Aus beat both NZ and Eng last time they played each other?