# 2025 British & Irish Lions tour to Australia

The 2025 British & Irish Lions tour to Australia is an international rugby union tour scheduled to take place in Australia between June and August 2025. The British & Irish Lions, a team selected from players eligible to represent England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, are scheduled to play a three-match test series against the Australia national team, as well as matches against Australia's four Super Rugby franchises and one against an invitational side made up of players from Australia and New Zealand. The Lions were also due to play against the Melbourne Rebels Super Rugby franchise, but they were disbanded in 2024; a replacement match is yet to be announced as of December 2024. Ireland coach Andy Farrell was appointed as the Lions' head coach for the tour in January 2024.

## Schedule

The fixtures for the tour were announced on 19 July 2023. The tour will culminate with a three-match test series between the British & Irish Lions and the Australia national team, and will also feature matches against Australia's five Super Rugby franchises. The Lions will open the tour with matches against the Western Force, Queensland Reds, New South Wales Waratahs and ACT Brumbies; they were scheduled to face the Melbourne Rebels in the week between the first and second tests, but the Rebels were disbanded at the end of the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season after going into administration earlier in the year. A match against a team of players with indigenous Australian and Pacific Islander heritage was proposed in its place in November 2024. The week before the first test, they will play a match in Adelaide against an invitational team made up of players from Australia and New Zealand. A warm-up match against Argentina, to be played at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on 20 June 2025, was announced on 7 December 2023; it will be the Lions' first ever match in Ireland.
| Date | Home team | Score | Away team | Venue |
| 20 June | British & Irish Lions | v | Argentina | Aviva Stadium, Dublin |
| 28 June | Western Force | v | British & Irish Lions | Perth Stadium, Perth |
| 2 July | Queensland Reds | v | British & Irish Lions | Lang Park, Brisbane |
| 5 July | New South Wales Waratahs | v | British & Irish Lions | Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney |
| 9 July | ACT Brumbies | v | British & Irish Lions | Canberra Stadium, Canberra |
| 12 July | Invitational AU & NZ | v | British & Irish Lions | Adelaide Oval, Adelaide |
| 19 July | Australia | v | British & Irish Lions | Lang Park, Brisbane |
| 22 July | TBA | v | British & Irish Lions | Docklands Stadium, Melbourne |
| 26 July | Australia | v | British & Irish Lions | Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne |
| 2 August | Australia | v | British & Irish Lions | Stadium Australia, Sydney |

## Venues

| Sydney | Sydney | Melbourne | Melbourne |
| Sydney Football Stadium | Stadium Australia | Melbourne Cricket Ground | Docklands Stadium |
| Capacity: 42,500 | Capacity: 83,500 | Capacity: 100,024 | Capacity: 56,347 |
| Brisbane | SydneyMelbourneBrisbaneAdelaidePerthCanberra | SydneyMelbourneBrisbaneAdelaidePerthCanberra | Adelaide |
| Lang Park | SydneyMelbourneBrisbaneAdelaidePerthCanberra | SydneyMelbourneBrisbaneAdelaidePerthCanberra | Adelaide Oval |
| Capacity: 52,500 | SydneyMelbourneBrisbaneAdelaidePerthCanberra | SydneyMelbourneBrisbaneAdelaidePerthCanberra | Capacity: 53,500 |
| Perth | Perth | Canberra | Canberra |
| Perth Stadium | Perth Stadium | Canberra Stadium | Canberra Stadium |
| Capacity: 60,000 | Capacity: 60,000 | Capacity: 25,000 | Capacity: 25,000 |

## Squad

Ireland coach Andy Farrell was appointed as the Lions' head coach for the tour in January 2024. He takes over from Warren Gatland, who had led the team on the previous three tours. Farrell was one of Gatland's assistant coaches on the 2013 and 2017 tours to Australia and New Zealand, respectively.

### Management and staff

Management :
| Role | Name | Name |
| Chief executive | Ben Calveley | Ben Calveley |
| Chairman | Ieuan Evans | Ieuan Evans |
| Coaches |||
| Role | Name | Union / Club |
| Head coach | Andy Farrell | Ireland |
| Performance staff |||
| Role | Name | Union / Club |
| General manager | David Nucifora | Scotland |
| Head of athletic performance | Aled Walters | Ireland |
| Head of analysis | Vinny Hamond | Ireland |
| Director of operations | Charlotte Gibbons | England |
| Head of communications | Jonny Fordham | Premiership Rugby |

## Broadcasting rights

| Territory | Rights holder | Ref. |
| Australia | Nine(Stan) | |
| United Kingdom  Republic of Ireland | Sky Sports(Now) | |