How to watch England v France in the Rugby League World Cup

England faced France in a crucial match for the Rugby League World Cup on October 24, 2026, at HBF Park in Perth. This match was essential for England, who needed to win to keep their hopes of reaching the semi-finals alive, following a disappointing 30-12 defeat to Tonga in their opening match. With the tournament's format putting significant pressure on them, England had to secure a substantial victory over France, while also relying on Tonga to defeat Samoa.

England’s head coach, Brian McDermott, made a single change to the starting line-up, bringing in Matty Ashton to replace Zach Eckersley on the wing. France entered the match looking to recover from a heavy loss to Samoa, where they were defeated 78-4. In response, they made several adjustments to their squad: Thomas Lacans was named as five-eighth, Romeo Tropis was positioned at centre, and Amir Bourouh was selected as hooker, leading to captain Benjamin Garcia being moved to lock.

Viewers could find various options to watch the match both online and on television. In Australia, fans could enjoy free live streams on Seven and its 7plus service after creating a free account with their email addresses. For those traveling outside Australia, a VPN was recommended to access the Australian streams.

In the UK and Ireland, Premier Sports held the rights to broadcast the match, offering subscriptions at £18.99 per month for a rolling contract or reduced rates for annual subscriptions. In Ireland, Sky Sports subscribers had the option to include Premier Sports in their package.

In the USA, Premier Sports also broadcasted the match, offering an RLWC26 Pass for $25 which covered access to all 53 games in the Rugby League World Cup.

The line-ups for the match included:
England:
1. AJ Brimson
2. Dominic Young
3. Hugo Savala
4. Herbie Farnworth
19. Matty Ashton
6. George Williams (captain)
7. Harry Smith
8. Max King
9. Brad O’Neill
10. Luke Thompson
11. Junior Nsemba
12. Kai Pearce-Paul
13. Victor Radley
Interchange:
14. Jez Litten
15. Ben Currie
16. Ethan Havard
17. Sam Walters
18. Jack Welsby
21. Mikey Lewis

France:
1. Arthur Mourgue
2. Guillermo Aispuro-Bichet
3. Latrell Siegwalt
4. Romeo Tropis
5. Benjamin Laguerre
6. Thomas Lacans
7. Theo Fages
8. Romain Navarrete
9. Amir Bourouh
10. Julian Bousquet
11. Arthur Romano
12. Mathieu Jussaume
13. Benjamin Garcia (captain)
Interchange:
14. Cesar Rouge
15. Lambert Belmas
16. Mathieu Cozza
17. Louis Grossemy
18. Jordan Dezaria
19. Fouad Yaha

The officials for the match included referee Adam Gee and touch judges Jon Stone and Matt Noyen.