Australia has not signed the Rugby League World Cup participation agreement despite organisers confirming it will take place in England this October.
The men's, the women's and the wheelchair events will all take place simultaneously in October and November.
Rugby League World Cup 2021 Chief Executive Jon Dutton told BBC that Australia is yet to sign and they are confident they will sign the agreement and send strong teams across all three competitions.
Australia is the defending champions for the men's and women's titles.
However, there are issues regarding COVID-19 regulations and quarantine rules for players and staff travelling back to Australia and New Zealand.
The Australian borders are currently closed, so anyone returning has to spend 14 days in government-managed quarantine.
There are reports that Australia's National Rugby League (NRL) teams want the tournament postponed to next year because those regulations mean players would only return to their clubs two weeks before trial games for the 2022 NRL season begin.
Rugby league officials estimated around 400-500 players, staff and team officials from NRL sides, representing several different countries, would be involved.
[Source: BBC]
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