Australia and New Zealand have officially withdrawn from this year's Rugby League World Cup, putting the entire tournament in major jeopardy.
Without the Kiwis and Kangaroos, it's hard to see how the tournament goes ahead.
On top of that, the majority of players from other Pacific Island teams as well as a percentage of the England team would come from the NRL.
Here's everything we know about the decision and the reasons why Australia and New Zealand withdrew from the 2021 Rugby League World Cup.
ARLC AND NZRL STATEMENT
Both organisations released a joint statement on Thursday afternoon confirming the news, citing player welfare and safety concerns.
"The Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) and New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) today informed the International Rugby League (IRL) and Rugby League World Cup (RLWC) organisers that Australia and New Zealand will not compete in a 2021 World Cup because of player welfare and safety concerns," the statement said.
"The ARLC and NZRL has again requested the RLWC2021 be postponed until 2022 to minimise risk of players contracting COVID-19 and ensure the best outcome for player wellbeing.
"The decision to withdraw from the RLWC2021 comes after considering the risk of COVID-19 infection in the United Kingdom, the worsening environment in Australia and the time a majority of NRL Telstra Premiership players will spend away from home under strict biosecurity conditions prior to the World Cup.
"The ARLC and NZRL have resolved, that in the present environment the risks to athletes and officials travelling to the UK to participate in the tournament this year are too great, and it is unable to endorse Australia and New Zealand participating in the RLWC in 2021."
PETER V'LANDYS EXPLAINS DECISION
ARLC Chairman Peter V'landys admitted it was a tough decision to make, but was the right one for all the players involved.
“Not participating in this year’s World Cup is not a decision the Commission has taken lightly, but we must put the best interests of our players and officials first," he said.
"Protecting them is our absolute priority.
“In the current environment, the risks to the safety, health and wellbeing of the players and officials travelling from Australia to participate in the tournament this year are insurmountable.
"The majority of NRL players are currently living away from home under difficult biosecurity protocols.
"They would then be required to remain under protocols and away from home for the duration of the tournament before again quarantining on return to Australia. This is too much to ask our players and officials to do.
“We have again requested the IRL and Rugby League World Cup consider postponing the event until 2022 to enable all players to participate.”
PHIL GOULD URGES AGAINST RLWC 2021
Earlier in the week, Phil Gould spoke openly about the idea of postponing the World Cup and predicted it would occur.
Speaking on 100% Footy, the former NSW Origin coach explained the reasons why it wouldn't go ahead and the logistical nightmare that would be facing the NRL players.
“Melbourne Storm have been away from home for two years, Warriors have been away from home for two years...we finished late last year because we delayed our competition and the elite players were playing Origin right through the end of November; we had a shortened pre-season this year," he said.
"The other concern is if we go over to England this year and play in those competitions, they’ve got to go into quarantine periods when they come home, and then they’ve got to have eight weeks off per the CBA to have a holiday. They’re not training until February – they start training in February to start playing in March, we get another disaster next season. Logistically it’s not possible.
"The thing is, this is a tournament that has been ratified by the IRL body, the chairman of which comes from the UK. They’ve got funding from the UK government for it, so they are very keen to see it go ahead.
"Without the NRL – it not only makes up the Australian team, but it will make up all the other Pacific Island teams and the New Zealand team, because all those players come from the NRL.
"Then it’s the vaccination issue – we’re not vaccinated here in this country, we’re very small vaccination numbers. We’ll have players that won’t get vaccinated because of their own beliefs.
"When that’s all explained to them, I don’t think any players are going to the World Cup in England at the end of the year.
"The league told them six months ago to postpone it, and the international body has forged ahead with it. Without the NRL, I don’t know how it exists."
Will the Rugby League World Cup actually go ahead?@PhilGould15 has a dire prediction.
— NRL on Nine (@NRLonNine) July 19, 2021
100% Footy - Channel 9 and 9Now. #9WWOS #NRL pic.twitter.com/WR9mKoFpIT
WARRIORS CEO CAMERON GEORGE EXPLAINS THE RISKS OF RLWC 2021
Warriors CEO Cameron George has remained an outspoken figure throughout the entire pandemic and its affects on rugby league, with his club facing plenty of adversity in the past 18 months.
He explained the risks of holding this year's World Cup and admitted he believes it should be postponed.
“Personally, I don’t think it should go ahead on the basis that lies on the risk over there,” he said on SENZ Mornings with Ian Smith.
“30,000 cases a day with COVID, and we’re shutting down states in Australia with 35 (cases).
“It’s a big risk. For us on a personal note, we lose all of our players thereabouts until the end of January next year, with the competition starting in March. It has a huge impact on us.”
"I also appreciate and respect the guys’ cultures and how they wish to represent them.
“I don’t think it should go ahead, but we’ll just have to wait and see.”
WILL PLAYERS DEFECT TO TIER 2 OR PACIFIC NATIONS FOR RLWC 2021?
At this stage, it would be hard to see how this could occur.
Even though the decision has come from the ARLC and NZRL, the reality is that a large portion of the players who would compete in the RLWC would be NRL players.
England, Samoa, Tonga, Fiji and PNG would have plenty of players from the NRL, which seem unlikely with Peter V'landys in charge.
The likelihood is that the World Cup will have to be postponed, but at this stage no official decision has been made since the withdrawals of Australia and New Zealand.