The Tri-Nations series was born in 1999 and was seen as a new way to get the best three rugby league nations, Australia, New Zealand and Great Britain playing against each other in a round robin tournament. After the dominance Australia showed in the 2000 Rugby League World Cup the Tri-Nations concept was shelved indefinitely.
After much lobbying from Wayne Bennett and the absence of a World Cup in 2004 the Tri-Nations tournament was reborn. The format was changed so all teams played each other twice. It breathed life back into a stale international scene and became a highly successful tournament. The Tri Nations series was also played in 2005 and 2006.
After the highly successful 2008 RLWC and the improvement shown in international depth the Tri-Nations was expanded and became the Four Nations in 2009. Great Britain was replaced by England and France became the 4th Nation.
In the 2010 Four Nations the 4th team qualified via the Pacific Cup. Papua New Guinea took out the Pacific Cup and hence joined the big three in the 2010 Four Nations tournament down under.
In 2011 Wales became the 4th team after defeating France in the final of the European Cup.
After Australia complained about player burn-out it was decided that the Four Nations series be put on hold until after the 2013 Rugby League World Cup.
The next four Nations series is expected to take place in 2014.
For more information on past Tri-Nations and Four Nations Series and future events please click on the appropriate item in the menu to the left of this article
Tri/Four Nations Winners – Australia (5), New Zealand (2). (2 nations in Total)
Tri/Four Nations Runners-up – New Zealand (2), Australia (2), England (2), Great Britain (1) (4 nations in Total)
Tri/Four Nations Hosts – Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain, England, France, Wales (6 nations in total).
Highest Tri/Four Nations Crowd – 2006, Game 6, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane, Australia, Crowd – 44,358
Nations to play in Tri/Four Nations – Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain, England, France, Papua New Guinea, Wales (7 nations in Total). Note: From 2010 the fourth nation will need to qualify via European Cup or Pacific Cup.
Nations to play in Qualifiers (Pacific & European Cups) – Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Lebanon, Serbia, Italy, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Fiji, Cook Islands (10 nations in Total)
