The Rugby League History Podcast

When we talk about Rugby League World Cups, it’s easy to think about the modern tournament — decent crowds, professional athletes, modern stadiums and between 10 and 16 nations from all around the world competing on the biggest stage.

But go back more than 50 years to 1972 and you enter a very different world of rugby league. The game was still largely played by working men, international tours could involve extraordinary travel, and the World Cup itself was a much smaller, more intimate affair.

Yet for all those differences, the passion, pride and fierce rivalry were every bit as real. The 1972 World Cup, staged in France, would become one of the most memorable tournaments in the history of the game.

And while the tournament ultimately produced a dramatic finish that has become part of rugby league folklore, there is so much more to this World Cup than simply who won the trophy.

So, in this podcast, we're going back to 1972 — to the background, the players, the characters, the matches, the controversies and the stories behind one of the great Rugby League World Cups, particularly if you are British.

The Rugby League History Podcast is a weekly or bi-weekly pod about exactly what it says in the title! Reflecting what is going in during each stage of the season, renowned historians Andrew Ferguson (Aus) and Prof. Tony Collins (UK) join host Lee Addison to reflect on all that happened in rugby league history around the time each podcast is released!

So expect historical World Cup content during World Cup times, club content during domestic league times and...well you get the picture!

Andrew Ferguson is a much-published author / writer on the subject of rugby league history, is co-owner of the amazing Rugby League Project and co-host of the Fergo and the Freak podcast.

Professor Tony Collins is the DOYEN of rugby league history. He’s a professor of history, fourth generation Hull KR supporter, and the author of 'Rugby’s Great Split', 'Rugby League: A People’s History', and last year’s ‘Roy Francis: Rugby’s Forgotten Black Leader’.

Host Lee Addison is a former coach at NRL clubs, World Cups and Elite High Schools. He is the owner of Rugby League Coach.

Please email Lee with questions or suggestions for the podcast on [email protected] You can also message and follow us @rugbyleaguehistorypod on Facebook, Instagram and X.

Between 1957 and 1970, rugby league didn't just change on the field. It changed as a product, as entertainment, and as an international sport.   And a lot of the rugby league we recognise today starts taking shape right here.  

In just 13 years, rugby league went from a four-team World Cup with no final to international tournaments, television, massive club rivalries and some of the most famous moments in the game's history.  

And there's something else happening during this period that would be almost impossible for a modern rugby league fan to appreciate.  

 
The period between 1957 and 1970 was one of the most volatile, transformative, and momentous eras in modern human history. It was defined by the Cold War, the race to the moon, the collapse of global empires, and a massive societal upheaval driven by civil rights and youth counter-culture. Rugby league was also coming into people's living rooms for the first time.  

Britain was already televising rugby league before Australia really got regular television coverage of the game. The first televised rugby league match in Australia came in 1961. And by the late 1960s, major rugby league matches were becoming regular television events. But Britain was ahead of the game. The BBC had shown the Challenge Cup Final as early as 1948. Great Britain against New Zealand from Swinton was televised in 1951. And by 1965, the BBC2 Floodlit Trophy was bringing rugby league into people's homes on a regular basis.

And that matters. Because this is the beginning of rugby league becoming something different. It wasn't just something you WENT to watch anymore. You could sit in your living room and watch it. You could hear the commentators. You could see the stars. You could follow the big games without actually being at the ground.

And by the time we get to 1970, Eddie Waring's voice is becoming synonymous with British rugby league, television is changing the way people consume sport, and the game is beginning to look much more like the professional entertainment product we recognise today. This is the story of how rugby league came into your living room.

1957. 1960. 1968. 1970. Four years. Thirteen years of change. And by the end of it, rugby league would never quite be the same again.

Oh, and the World Cup Trophy got STOLEN! 

Two of the game's finest historians, are taking you back to relive the story of the Rugby League World Cups between 1957 and 1970.

The Rugby League History Podcast is a weekly or bi-weekly pod about exactly what it says in the title!

Andrew Ferguson is a much-published author / writer on the subject of rugby league history, is co-owner of the amazing Rugby League Project and co-host of the Fergo and the Freak podcast.

Professor Tony Collins is the DOYEN of rugby league history. He’s a professor of history, fourth generation Hull KR supporter, and the author of 'Rugby’s Great Split', 'Rugby League: A People’s History', and last year’s ‘Roy Francis: Rugby’s Forgotten Black Leader’. 

Host Lee Addison is a former coach at NRL clubs, World Cups and Elite High Schools. He is the owner of Rugby League Coach.

Please email Lee with questions or suggestions for the podcast on [email protected]

You can also message and follow us @rugbyleaguehistorypod on Facebook, Instagram and X.  @rugbyleaguehistorypod

Imagine if you can it's October 1954...    72 years ago.  

In the UK, bomb sites from WW2 still scar many cities. Food rationing has only just ended and most families don't own a television. Winston Churchill is approaching 80 and serving his second term as Prime Minister.  

On the other side of the world, Australia and New Zealand are embracing a new era of post-war optimism. They’ve both enjoyed a royal visit. Families are dreaming of a brick home, a car in the driveway and a brighter future. 

Sydney was rugby league mad, in Brisbane it was growing fast. But in France, like so many of its towns and cities, the sport only just about survived after the war. Less than a decade earlier, it had been outlawed. Rugby league was almost wiped from existence.

But, it refused to die.

In October 1954, Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand are heading to France and it’s not for a Test series.  

For the very first time, rugby league will crown a World Champion.  

Two of the game's finest historians, are taking you back to relive the story of the first Rugby League World Cup in 1954.

The Rugby League History Podcast is a weekly or bi-weekly pod about exactly what it says in the title!

Andrew Ferguson is a much-published author / writer on the subject of rugby league history, is co-owner of the amazing Rugby League Project and co-host of the Fergo and the Freak podcast.

Professor Tony Collins is the DOYEN of rugby league history. He’s a professor of history, fourth generation Hull KR supporter, and the author of 'Rugby’s Great Split', 'Rugby League: A People’s History', and last year’s ‘Roy Francis: Rugby’s Forgotten Black Leader’. 

Host Lee Addison is a former coach at NRL clubs, World Cups and Elite High Schools. He is the owner of Rugby League Coach.

Please email Lee with questions or suggestions for the podcast on [email protected]

You can also message and follow us @rugbyleaguehistorypod on Facebook, Instagram and X.  @rugbyleaguehistorypod