IRL Hall of Legends

The IRL Hall of Legends is the hall of fame for international rugby league, created in 2026 by the International Rugby League to recognise those who have made a major impact on the sport's international game. On 15 April 2026, the IRL announced its creation, with the first 42 members inducted during the 2026 Rugby League World Cup.

The initial inductions were split into pre-1954 men, post-1954 men, and women. 1954 was chosen as the cut-off due to the creation of the Rugby League World Cup in that year. The next induction will be during the 2030 Rugby League World Cup, which will also include wheelchair rugby league players. Jason Taumalolo is the only inductee still playing, recognised for his decision to play for Tonga over New Zealand in 2017 which permanently changed the international landscape.

Australia has the most inductees, with 21 representatives having played for the Kangaroos or Jillaroos.

Criteria

To be considered for induction, a player must have:

• Made a significant contribution to international rugby league, and/or
• Be a member of their nation's Hall of Fame or equivalent recognition, and/or
• Been awarded an IRL Golden Cap (50 Tests), and/or
• Won the IRL Golden Boot/RLIF International Player of the Year Award

Inductees

Pre-1954 men

Inducted	Player	Nation	Years	Caps
2026	Clive Churchill	Australia	1948–1957	37
	Dally Messenger	Australia  New Zealand	1907–1910	12
	Puig Aubert	France	1947–1956	46
	Jim Sullivan	Wales  Great Britain   Other Nationalities	1924–1933	60
	Harold Wagstaff	England  Great Britain	1911–1921	21
	Dave Brown	Australia	1933–1936	9
	Gus Risman	Wales  Great Britain	1932–1946	36
	Frank Burge	Australia	1914–1922	13
	Billy Batten	England  Great Britain	1907–1921	25
	Jean Galia	France	1934–1936	4

Post-1954 men

Inducted	Player	Nation	Years	Caps
2026	Darren Lockyer	Australia	1997–2011	63
	John Raper	Australia	1959–1968	40
	Wally Lewis	Australia	1981–1991	34
	Reg Gasnier	Australia	1959–1968	39
	Mal Meninga	Australia	1982–1994	46
	Cameron Smith	Australia	2006–2017	56
	Arthur Beetson	Australia	1966–1977	29
	Graeme Langlands	Australia	1963–1975	45
	Sir Billy Boston	Great Britain   Other Nationalities	1954–1963	34
	Bob Fulton	Australia	1968–1978	37
	Andrew Johns	Australia	1995–2006	26
	Ellery Hanley	England  Great Britain	1984–1993	38
	Mark Graham	New Zealand	1977–1988	29
	Johnathan Thurston	Australia	2006–2017	38
	Ron Coote	Australia	1967–1975	24
	Ruben Wiki	New Zealand	1994–2006	55
	Stacey Jones	New Zealand	1995–2006	46
	Brad Fittler	Australia	1991–2001	40
	Alex Murphy	England  Great Britain	1958–1971	29
	Malcolm Reilly	England  Great Britain	1970–1977	12
	Roger Millward	England  Great Britain	1966–1978	47
	Neil Fox	England  Great Britain	1959–1969	30
	Petero Civoniceva	Australia  Fiji	2001–2014	51
	Mick Sullivan	England  Great Britain	1954–1963	51
	Billy Slater	Australia	2008–2017	30
	Jason Taumalolo	Tonga  New Zealand	2014–	34

Women

Inducted	Player	Nation	Years	Caps
2026	Ali Brigginshaw	Australia	2009–2025	29
	Karyn Murphy	Australia	1998–2013	28
	Honey Hireme-Smiler	New Zealand	2003–2019	32
	Luisa Avaiki	New Zealand  Samoa	1995–2008	25
	Tahnee Norris	Australia	1998–2013	33
	Trish Hina	New Zealand	1999–2010	22

References