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Rugby League World Cup

"It's a rendez-vous we can't miss" - Laureane Biville

Published by IntRL
14 Jan 2022

Laureane Biville is French international player who has also played in Australia for a short spell until Covid-19 cut short that adventure. She recently played for France in their international against England.

The opportunity to play in a home world cup is not lost on Laureane, “I think this is a great and beautiful opportunity for us to show that rugby league in France is here and ready to return to the centre of the stage.

However, there is a lot of hard work to go into the preparation of all the French squads and there is an understanding about the requirements of creating a successful women’s squad, “We have to learn how to think and train like professional players now, we've been asking for year to be treated like men's team. If we want people to stop treating us like amateurs, we must first show them that we are aware of the level to be reached and have a more professional approach to increase the level. If we do that, I think we can surprise people as we did against England last year.”

The prize on offer for French Rugby League is immense. Laureane has a clear vision of what it can achieve and how. “It's a rendez-vous we can't miss. To me, the responsibility doesn't only rest with our federation, every club, every player, everyone must work together to make sure we offer the best World Cup possible. We’ve not done that in the past but now is the time.

The impact of a successful World Cup will help to promote Rugby League within our country. “Playing a World Cup at home gives the opportunity to French people who never watched a rugby league game before, to come and discover the atmosphere of our sport. With games on TV as well, we can reach a new audience, attract new players and fans and build the next and a stronger generation of our rugby league community.”

Finally, looking at the competition and the expansion of the women’s competition to sixteen nations, Laureane can see new countries making and impact. She has been very supportive of the development of women’s rugby league in Africa and has leant her name to a women’s tournament in Cameroon. Whilst not tipping an African nation as the potential 2025 world champions she is encouraging the newcomers, “Everything is possible, and I'll be more than happy to see them defend their colours at the World Cup.”

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