Lord Caine, who was given a life peerage in 2016, joins the Board after decades working as a political aide, specialising in Northern Ireland.

He also supports English Super League side Leeds Rhinos.

Two venues in Leeds - the Rhino's Headingley Stadium and football ground Elland Road - are set to be used when England stages the event in October and November.

"Having good political support is important for the tournament," said RLWC2021 chair Chris Brindley, speaking exclusively to insidethegames.

"We wanted somebody who loved the game as Lord Caine does, but also somebody who could move around either House of Parliament with their connections just in the event of need.

"We wanted someone who can talk to someone from public health and different departments including the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).

"It's great having a heavyweight politician - and Lord Caine has worked in Northern Ireland, so understanding stakeholder management is a great thing to have on our Board."

Joining Caine on the Board is Sue Catton, who will represent UK Sport.

Catton's area of expertise lies in operations, having worked as the sports manager for hockey and wheelchair rugby at the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics.

Brindley added that Catton's experience at the Games could be useful with the tournament set to take place at a time when COVID-19 is still a concern.

"What Sue is able to give us as a member of the Risk and Audit Committee, being around at London 2012, she gives us some good experience in tournament operations," added Brindley.

"As we get closer to the tournament, understanding the nuances of the operations, having someone like Sue on their gives us that richness."

Emma Young, who was selected for her digital experience, will serve as an International Rugby League representative, while Hitesh Patel - head of international sport, major sports events and anti-doping at the DCMS - also joins the Board as an observer.

These appointments were made on the recommendations of Seamus Gillen of Value Alpha, who independently conducted a Board evaluation.

Organisations supported by the Government must have a Board evaluation every four years, in line with the Code for Sports Governance. 

The independent evaluation included a numeric scoring system, anonymous individual interviews, interviewing Board directors, observing Board meetings and discussing strategy documents. 

"I'm a great believer in having the Board evaluation as soon as possible, therefore you should be able to act on any recommendations so that you are in a position to make better decisions," said Brindley.

"Because we are effectively a pop-up tournament with a clear end date, we wanted the very best Board from a skillset point of view, coming into the final 18 months until the tournament, because that's when the big decisions are made.

"I'm delighted to say overall, Seamus Gillen from Value Alpha said it was an outstanding Board and came along with a series of recommendations.

"We have worked through those recommendations and some people thought it would be great to step aside and allow hiring some replacements.

"I think we're in a really good place to complement the existing Board members who again, have been independently evaluated."

In light of the evaluation, the Risk Oversight Committee was created and is comprised of independent non-executive directors.

Gillen will also return to evaluate RLWC2021's implementation of the recommendations, interviewing Board members and the new additions to assess ongoing practices.

This independent Board evaluation is the first of its kind for a major event in the UK.

The 2021 Rugby League World Cup is set to span from October 23 to November 27 and will feature men's, women's and wheelchair competitions, bringing three tournaments under one banner.