Rugby League

Rugby league

Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...

 in the Czech Republic

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

was started in 2006. The Czechs received government funding before a game was played there, and in their first game on August 5, 2006 in Prague

Prague

Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

, the Czechs went down 34-28 to the Netherlands

Netherlands national rugby league team

The Netherlands Rugby league was formed in January 2003. The national team played its first international match in 2005.-2008 World Cup Qualifying:See Also 2008 Rugby League World Cup qualifying...

.

In 2007 the Czech Republic took part in the European Shield tournament. This included two other 2nd tier nations; Germany and Serbia. Czech national team lost the both matches, v Germany 22-44 in Prague (4 August) and v Serbia 16-56 in Belgrade (18 August), and finished third.

In 2011, the Czech Rugby League Association was admitted to affiliate membership of the Rugby League European Federation

Rugby League European Federation

The Rugby League European Federation is the umbrella body for nations playing the sport of rugby league football across Europe and the Northern Hemisphere. It supports the Rugby League International Federation . The RLEF "oversees and co-ordinates the development of the sport in all its member...

after reforming its governance.