THE streaming of Rugby League World Cup qualifying games on the internet could be a forerunner to all the 2008 tournament matches being shown via computers, with Australia possibly creating a world first for viewing an international sporting event.
The matches being played to determine the final place in the 10-team competition are already being shown on Telstra's Big Pond, setting up the possibility all 18 games in the October-November event in Australia next year will be available on computer.
Channel Nine, the free-to-air rights holder, is committed to show all "super pool" matches involving Australia, New Zealand and England, but pay TV network Fox Sports is yet to reach agreement with ARL chairman Colin Love to telecast other matches. Love, the Rugby League World Cup 2008 tournament director and International Federation chairman, is keen to revive and resource the code at a global level, rendering it financially free of News Ltd, which half-owns both the NRL and Fox Sports.
Even if Fox Sports agrees to buy games not covered by Nine, Big Pond may also show them, as TV executives remain unconvinced that competing broadcast mediums fracture audiences.
"Some people might want to watch in the boss's time on their office laptop," an official involved in the negotiations said.
Big Pond will stream games involving the four nations chasing the 10th World Cup place - Samoa versus USA, and Wales versus Lebanon - from Widnes tomorrow and the repechage final between the winners at Featherstone on November 14.
Britain's BSkyB, New Zealand's Sky Sports, Show Time in the Middle East and Samoa in the Pacific are also showing the qualifying matches, with the UK network committed to telecasting all 18 games in the 2008 tournament live from 12 different venues.
Sky New Zealand will also beam all 18 games live and Show Time, while securing all rights, will decide programming when Lebanon's fate is known.
Officials of the nine nations already through to the main draw met in the UK this week, with Love confident the TV-friendly nature of the game, together with recent surprise results, mean the international body can accumulate a war chest as it strives for independence from News Ltd and bragging rights over rugby union, whose World Cup in France was boring and unspectacular.
"No sport can make you feel part of the action quite like rugby league, and there is no more intense or prestigious arena than the international game," Love said. "The format of the 2008 World Cup means that we will see teams with a real chance of causing an upset in almost every game.
"Australia is finding itself constantly tested by New Zealand and Great Britain, while France is re-emerging on the back of some strong performances and Catalan Dragons reaching the Challenge Cup final [in the English Super League competition].
"We have seen Tonga and PNG score some surprise results against Australian teams."
St George Illawarra centre Mark Gasnier, in England to promote the tournament, agreed, saying: "When you see Tonga beat the Junior Kangaroos [44-6], you take notice."
Gasnier claimed interest in the World Cup would gather momentum when the NRL season kicked off in March, rugby league's centenary year in Australia.
"Throughout the NRL, there are so many different nationalities and you can't help but be interested in how these guys go," he said, arguing that fans will track the progress of possible World Cup national combinations, as well as their club teams.
Argentina's strong performance at the recent Rugby World Cup in France did not surprise those who had noted the many Argies playing for French club teams.
South Sydney's Nigel Vagana, who has represented New Zealand, said he was desperate to play for Samoa again after first representing the island nation in 1995.
"It's like an Irishman might be eligible to represent Australia but he's still an Irishman," he said.
Vagana revealed he had discussed this sense of identity with Sonny Bill Williams when the Bulldogs second-rower was in conflict over the lure of representing NSW in State of Origin football or playing for New Zealand.
Vagana said Origin distracted Polynesians and Maori from the vital question of who they are.
"I said, 'I loved Origin, but a part of what you get out of it is to know you come from NSW or Queensland'," Vagana said.
"I see [Cronulla's] Greg Bird come back from Origin and he can't stop talking about it.
"It's in his blood. But I'm Samoan."
Samoa missed automatic qualification by just two points on for and against, despite having equalled Tonga and Fiji in win/loss records, further indicating of the closeness of the competition.