http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/66240886" rel="nofollow - British and Irish Lions to play combined New Zealand-Australia XV on 2025 tour

The British and Irish Lions will play a New Zealand and Australia invitational XV as part of their nine-match tour down under in 2025. The historic fixture in Adelaide will precede Test matches with the Wallabies in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. A sell-out at the 100,000-capacity Melbourne Cricket Ground would smash records for a Lions Test match. The series finale will be played in front of more than 80,000 fans in Sydney's Olympic Park. "We are delighted to announce the tour schedule as we look ahead to what is to be one of the most eagerly anticipated series in history," said Lions chief executive Ben Calveley. The 2025 Lions tour fixtures in 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 agreement between the Lions, Premiership Rugby and the United Rugby Championship will ensure an unprecedented two-week preparation period before the tour opener in Perth against Western Force on 28 June. On previous tours the Premiership final has taken place only a week before the Lions' opening fixture, hampering the tourists' preparation. "I would also like to thank Premiership Rugby and the United Rugby Championship, whose co-operation has resulted in the longest preparation period for a tour in recent history, which gives us the best possible chance of a series victory," added Calveley.

Players picked for the 2025 British and Irish Lions will be available for the whole tour of Australia thanks to a new partnership with Premiership Rugby and the United Rugby Championship. Players involved in knock-out stages of club competitions - like Saracens' Jamie George in 2021 - have missed the start of recent tours. But they will now able able to take part in all pre-tour activities. Lions chair Ieuan Evans celebrated the "unity" underpinning the agreement. He added that the tour will now be able to "showcase the best of what our game has to offer". "To achieve our ambition of success on the pitch, we need our very best players, and this partnership is crucial to this," Evans added. The Lions' last Test series win came in Australia in 2013, before a drawn series in New Zealand in 2017 and a loss to South Africa in 2021. The deal comes after several players from the Premiership - the top flight in English rugby - were unavailable in 2021 when a warm-up Test against Japan clashed with the Premiership final, which took place on the same day the tour began.

“New” partnership?! This was mentioned a few months ago, wasn’t it? In fact you mentioned it in the previous post!

It's the Lions management building interest post-RWC (regurgitating the news) - and reminding the Aussies that they've got to build themselves a competitive team before the 2027 RWC.

Great player but a woeful recent chair of Welsh rugby.

If his role is ceremonial, fine.

I have been lucky enough to go on two previous tours, to SA in 2009 and NZ in 2017, and one thing I can say for certain, it will be some occasion and something that the players, coaches and fans will never forget. There is something quite unique about The Lions not just in rugby but across all sports, very special.

Only being out in Oz to watch England win The Ashes (something of a rarity down under!) back in 2010-11 comes close to the experience of following a Lions tour, so bring on 2025. Can't wait.

Andy Farrell has been appointed head coach of the British and Irish Lions for the 2025 tour to Australia. The Englishman, currently coaching Ireland, succeeds Warren Gatland in the role, having served as his assistant for the 2013 and 2017 Lions series. Farrell, 48, has led Ireland to a first series win in New Zealand and a Six Nations Grand Slam since taking charge in 2019. Last month he signed a new Ireland contract that runs until 2027. His role with the Lions will start in December 2024. Farrell said it was an "honour and a privilege" and thanked the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) for allowing him to accept the "prestigious opportunity". "There is a wealth of talent across Britain and Ireland, and I am looking forward to building a team that can deliver the ultimate goal of success in Australia," he said. "The British and Irish Lions fan base is really special, uniting supporters from England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and beyond. "Mobilising that sea of red by creating a team that our fans can connect with and be proud of will be a key priority for me and will be crucial to our success." Farrell will prepare the Lions for 10 games, including an opening Test against Argentina in Dublin and ending with a three-Test series against Australia in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.

Does anyone know what the score is with England players who play their league rugby abroad being eligible for the Lions? There could be a few of them come next year and wondered if the rules will be relaxed with this.

Last time I checked, that was an England rule, not a Lions rule. Indeed, I remember in 2013 they said they were looking at calling Wilkinson up for one last hurrah from Toulon. 

Steffon Armitage was also a longshot consideration for the 2013 tour due to his performances for Toulon, but looking back on the information at that time the Top 14 Final on 1st June 2013 happened to coincide with the opening match of the Lions Tour (Lions vs Barbarians in Hong Kong).

With the Tests starting on 22nd June I guess that Gatland & co decided to have a settled squad rather than have a few galacticos dropping in.

I think you're right Robb, and it makes sense to me.

I also think the time has come for England to be more flexible with their ineligibility criteria around foreign-based club players. 

It would be quite some story if Owen went on the tour and perhaps even captained the Lions under his father as head coach. And even more incredible if he did all that based on club form alone if he were to make the move to Racing. Interesting year ahead and the article below is worth a read:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union/2024/01/12/lions-leave-door-open-for-owen-farrell/" rel="nofollow - https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union/2024/01/12/lions-leave-door-open-for-owen-farrell/

A tour to France would be better sport than Australia.

A tour to France would be better sport than Australia.

My son in law’s Australian. They don’t like losing. Joe Schmidt and a few Rugby League players might make a difference 

Whilst the Aussies might be all at sea at the moment, it'll still be an occasion and the planned match vs a combined Aus/All Blacks side will be intriguing. 

The SA tour was dominated by Covid, and was nothing like tours of old as a result, indeed a Lions tour in name only. However, 2017 in NZ was perhaps the best of the modern era, with some real quality test matches being played.

🦁 

He missed all the pre tour prep and arrived a week into the tour.

Imagine that being more than a handful of players and it becomes awkward.

In that case, Farrell will pick URC/Prem players over Top14 if it's not obvious.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/68019292" rel="nofollow - Joe Schmidt: Former Ireland head coach named new Australia boss

Former Ireland boss Joe Schmidt has been appointed as Australia head coach, succeeding Eddie Jones. Schmidt's two-year contract begins in March and runs to the end of the next British and Irish Lions tour in 2025. Jones resigned in October after the Wallabies failed to reach the knockout stages of a World Cup for the first time. "I thought it was a good opportunity to try to pitch in and get Australia up and running," said Schmidt.

You heard it here first

The Wallabies will offer serious competition to the British and Irish Lions next summer, says Rugby Australia chief executive Phil Waugh. Australia suffered the heaviest defeat in their 125-year Test history on Saturday when they were swept aside 67-27 by Argentina. It was their third defeat from four games in this year's Rugby Championship and follows a miserable pool-stage exit at last year's Rugby World Cup. "You can see the progress is there," Waugh told the Sydney Morning Herald, external when asked about the team's trajectory before the Lions' arrival Down Under in June. "It is not nearly where we need it to be, but if we keep progressing at the speed with which we have moved things in the last six months, then there is plenty of time." Waugh believes the headline-grabbing scoreline against the Pumas hid the improvements that have been made during new head coach Joe Schmidt's six months in charge. Australia, who defeated Argentina the week before, led 20-3 in Santa Fe before capitulating in the second half. They were also within two points of world champions South Africa at half-time of their August meeting before losing 30-12. "It is a team that is, and I hate using the word 're-building', but it is a team that is re-setting, and it takes experiences in big moments to get better," Waugh added. "Obviously the enormity of the scoreline in that second half [against Argentina] was disappointing. "But there is context that is important... we are not the most experienced team in world rugby, and we are building that experience."