British and Irish Lions to play combined New Zealand-Australia XV on 2025 tour

The British and Irish Lions suffered a 2-1 bid decision by South Africa successful 2019

The British and Irish Lions volition play a New Zealand and Australia invitational XV arsenic portion of their nine-match circuit down nether successful 2025.

A sell-out astatine the 100,000-capacity Melbourne Cricket Ground would smash records for a Lions Test match.

The bid finale volition beryllium played successful beforehand of much than 80,000 fans successful Sydney's Olympic Park.

"We are delighted to denote the circuit docket arsenic we look up to what is to beryllium 1 of the astir eagerly anticipated bid successful history," said Lions main enforcement Ben Calveley.

The 2025 Lions circuit fixtures successful full

• Saturday 28 June: v Western Force, Optus Stadium, Perth
• Wednesday 2 July: v Queensland Reds, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
• Saturday 5 July: v New South Wales Waratahs, Allianz Stadium, Sydney
• Wednesday 9 July: v ACT Brumbies, GIO Stadium, Canberra
• Saturday 12 July: v Invitational Australia & NZ XV, Adelaide Oval
• Saturday 19 July: First Test, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
• Tuesday 22 July: v Melbourne Rebels, Marvel Stadium, Melbourne
• Saturday 26 July: Second Test, Melbourne Cricket Ground
• Saturday 2 August: Third Test, Accor Stadium, Sydney

Meanwhile, an statement betwixt the Lions, Premiership Rugby and the United Rugby Championship volition guarantee an unprecedented two-week mentation play earlier the circuit opener successful Perth against Western Force connected 28 June.

On erstwhile tours the Premiership last has taken spot lone a week earlier the Lions' opening fixture, hampering the tourists' preparation.

"I would besides similar to convey Premiership Rugby and the United Rugby Championship, whose co-operation has resulted successful the longest mentation play for a circuit successful caller history, which gives america the champion imaginable accidental of a bid victory," added Calveley.

Calveley's counterpart astatine Rugby Australia, the erstwhile Wallaby flanker Phil Waugh, has called a Lions circuit "one of the large sporting festivals".

"Rugby Australia is looking guardant to welcoming backmost the Lions for the archetypal clip successful 12 years - arsenic good arsenic the tens of thousands of Lions fans from the bluish hemisphere," Waugh said.

"It is an breathtaking fixture of matches each astir the state with the Lions taking connected our Super Rugby franchises, 3 monolithic Test matches, and a marquee lucifer successful Adelaide featuring a combined invitational Australia-New Zealand side."

Ieuan Evans, president of The British & Irish Lions, added: "British & Irish Lions tours are unsocial successful the satellite of sport, some successful presumption of the eventual situation they correspond and the taste interaction they have.

"Lions tours to Australia person ever been memorable occasions and the 2025 circuit promises to beryllium nary different."

The Lions person toured Australia connected 3 erstwhile occasions, winning the bid successful 1989 and 2013 and losing to the then-world champion Wallabies successful 2001.

Four years agone Warren Gatland's broadside mislaid 2-1 to South Africa successful a bid played retired successful bare stadiums during the Covid pandemic.

Ireland brag Andy Farrell is wide expected to win Gatland arsenic Lions caput coach, having been a portion of the coaching squad successful 2013 and 2017.

• A caller drug, a caller story, a caller era: LA's streets are astir to get adjacent much dangerous...
• Manipulation, murder, and the dangers of isolation: The Sixth Commandment is simply a chilling true-crime play based connected a existent story