A list of men and women international rugby league matches played throughout 2021 and does not include wheelchair rugby league international matches. A â denotes a recognised, but unofficial match that did not contribute to the IRL World Rankings.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the European Championship B, European Championship C, European Championship D and Americas Championship were all initially postponed until 2021, however all were eventually abanonded except for the European Championship B and European Championship D due to travel restrictions.
2021 Rugby League World Cup was also postponed until 2022 due to Australia and New Zealand pulling out months before the tournament was scheduled to commence.
The following were the rankings at the beginning of the season.
Notes: