Fourteen teams will participate in the 2017 Rugby League World Cup. In August 2014 it was announced that seven teams had been granted automatic qualification, with four regional qualification tournaments selecting the remaining seven teams. Qualification began in earnest on 9 May 2015 when Spain played Latvia in a knock-out match, although the European Group B competition (which was used as a preliminary qualification tournament) began on 17 May 2014. As of 12 December 2015, 11 teams have qualified.
Contents
Qualified teams
Eight teams automatically qualified for the World Cup. Seven of the teams which reached the quarter-finals of the 2013 World Cup were granted automatic qualification; the other quarter-finalists, USA, were denied automatic qualification due to an internal governance dispute and instead forced to enter the qualification process. Papua New Guinea were granted automatic qualification as co-hosts in 2015.
Europe
Three teams will qualify from this region. A two-group, round-robin tournament took place in October 2016 to determine the qualifying nations - this was contested by the winners of the 2015 European Championship C tournament, the top three teams from the 2014–15 European Championship B tournament, and seeded nations Wales and Ireland. The tournament featured two groups of three teams playing in a single round-robin format. The winners of each group qualified for the World Cup, while the runners-up faced each other in a play-off match on 5 November 2016 to determine the final spot. A seeded draw took place to determine the groups on 5 November 2015.
Asia-Pacific
Two qualifying places were initially allocated to this region. Papua New Guinea were granted automatic qualification in 2015 after being confirmed as co-hosts, leaving one additional team to qualify from this region. A single play-off between Tonga and Cook Islands determined the final qualifier.
Americas
One team qualified from this region. A three-team round robin tournament was held in Florida in December 2015 to determine the qualifier.
Middle East-Africa
One team qualified from this region. A two match series was held between South Africa and Lebanon to determine the qualifier.