Leeds Rhinos legend joins panel to appoint England coach for 2026 rugby league World Cup

The national side have been without a team boss since Shaun Wane stood down in January following last autumn’s 3-0 Ashes Test whitewash by Australia. The new coach will be part-time and, initially, in charge only for this year’s World Cup.

England’s campaign begins against Tonga in Perth, Western Australia, on October 17, giving him just six months to prepare. The RFL today said the selection panel will “soon convene to interview candidates and recommend to the RFL board their preferred candidate in the next few weeks”.

Former Rhinos and England captain Sinfield was performance director at the RFL when the national side reached the World Cup final in 2017. He has been part of the England rugby union coaching staff since 2022.

RFL non-executive director Sara Symington is also on the panel, alongside the governing body’s interim chief executive Abi Ekoku and chairman Nigel Wood. They will be supported by RFL executive director of performance and participation Marc Lovering.

Wood, who is also chair of RL Commercial, said: “We are entering a crucial time as we bid to secure the right person to lead England’s men’s team into the upcoming World Cup. It is an exciting period for the sport, especially given how our athletes have already made such excellent starts to the new Super League season.

“The Ashes series whetted the appetite for international rugby league and everyone here is looking forward to the prospect of heading to Australia at the end of this campaign for the 17th edition of the World Cup. We have had applications and enquiries from a wide-range of world-class coaches, from both here and in the NRL. With the aid of our newly-assembled panel, we will now conduct interviews to narrow down our shortlist in readiness to find the ideal candidate.”

Of the panel, Wood added: “On the back of his incredible career with Leeds Rhinos, Kevin Sinfield represented his country on more than 40 occasions, captaining England in the 2013 World Cup, and serving as rugby director four years later when the national side reached the World Cup final in Brisbane. His knowledge, expertise and input will be invaluable as we undertake this important appointment.

“As a double Olympian in cycling, Sara Symington knows all about competing on the world stage. She has since worked as a performance advisor for UK Sport and reached medal targets when leading high-performance programmes with Archery GB, England Netball and UK Athletics before heading British Cycling’s Olympics and Paralympics programme for three years through the Paris 2024 cycle.

“Abi Ekoku has experience as Great Britain’s team manager when travelling down under, including for the famous 2006 Tri-Nations win over world champions Australia in Sydney and we are all enthused by the calibre of the candidates we’ll now assess.”

Speaking at his weekly press conference earlier today, Rhinos coach Brad Arthur confirmed he remains interested in the England role and called for a quick decision. He said: “I’m interested in having a conversation, when and if they want to have a conversation, but I have no idea what’s happening. Whoever the coach is that comes in wants to have a fair opportunity of trying to get it right, so I think it probably needs to happen sooner rather than later.”