Rugby Australia and The British & Irish Lions have today revealed the full fixture list for one of the largest and most prestigious Rugby events in the world, the 2025 Lions Tour.
The Tour will see the Lions play nine matches in Australia, with three Tests against the Wallabies, and six Tour games around the country - including a match against an invitational team of players from Australia and New Zealand in Adelaide.
The British & Irish Lions combine the best players from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, touring either Australia, New Zealand or South Africa every four years - meaning the Lions only visit Australia every 12 years.
The travelling festival is expected to attract 40,000 international visitors to Australia, who will tour around the country and deliver a strong economic outcome for all the participating cities, states, and territories.
The Lions Tour will be the first of the major Rugby events to visit Australia as part of the golden decade of Rugby; the 2025 Lions Tour will be followed by major Rugby events being hosted in Australia including the 2027 Rugby World Cup for men, the 2029 Rugby World Cup for women, and Rugby Sevens at the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.
Today's announcement took place in Brisbane, exactly two years before the first Test between the Wallabies and Lions at Suncorp Stadium in the Queensland capital.
The second Test will be at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 26 July, with the final Test match taking place at Accor Stadium in Sydney on 2 August.
The Tour will kick off in Australia on 28 June in Perth, with the Western Force hosting the visitors at Optus Stadium, before the Lions travel to the east coast to take on the Reds at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on 2 July.
The tourists head south the following weekend with clashes against the Waratahs at Allianz Stadium in Sydney on 5 July and the ACT Brumbies at GIO Stadium in Canberra on 9 July.
Adelaide Oval will host the final Tour game before the first Test, a marquee match-up between the Lions and an invitational Australia-New Zealand combined team on 12 July in what shapes up to be something of a "fourth Test" on the Tour.
The Lions will take on the Melbourne Rebels at Marvel Stadium between the first two Tests on 22 July.
Australia shares a long history with the Lions, with Australia's first ever Rugby Test match taking place against a British Isles team at the Sydney Cricket Ground in 1899 on the Lions' first tour to Australia - the home side won its first match, but lost the Series to the visitors.
The Lions last toured Australia in 2013, with the tourists winning the Test Series 2-1, while the ACT Brumbies claimed a famous victory in the nation's capital.
Twelve years earlier, the Wallabies scored a famous, come-from-behind 2-1 Series win with a dramatic 29-23 triumph in the decider.
The full 2025 Tour fixture list is as follows:
Saturday 28 June: Lions vs Western Force, Optus Stadium, Perth
Wednesday 2 July: Lions vs Queensland Reds, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Saturday 5 July: Lions vs New South Wales Waratahs, Allianz Stadium, Sydney
Wednesday 9 July: Lions vs ACT Brumbies, GIO Stadium, Canberra
Saturday 12 July: Lions vs Invitational AU & NZ XV, Adelaide Oval, Adelaide
Saturday 19 July: Lions v Wallabies (First Test), Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Tuesday 22 July: Lions v Melbourne Rebels, Marvel Stadium, Melbourne
Saturday 26 July: Lions v Wallabies (Second Test), Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
Saturday 2 August: Lions v Wallabies (Third Test), Accor Stadium, Sydney
To coincide with the announcement of the Lions Tour fixtures, Rugby Australia has launched a new range of Wallabies First membership products, including a membership guaranteeing access to purchase Tour games, as well as advanced opportunities to purchase Lions Test tickets.
Travel packages for The British & Irish Lions Tour in Australia in 2025 are now on-sale with Wallabies Travel. Wallabies Travel are the official travel partner of Rugby Australia. Visit wallabiestravel.com.au for more information.
Rugby Australia CEO, Phil Waugh:
"The British & Irish Lions Tour is one of the great sporting festivals - it is a real landmark of Australian and world sport. Rugby Australia is looking forward to welcoming back the Lions for the first time in 12 years - as well as the tens of thousands of Lions fans from the northern hemisphere. It is an exciting fixture of matches all around the country with the Lions taking on our Super Rugby franchises, three massive Test matches, and a marquee match in Adelaide featuring a combined invitational Australia-New Zealand side."
Ben Calveley, CEO of The British & Irish Lions:
"We are delighted to announce the Tour schedule today as we look ahead to what is to be one of the most eagerly anticipated Series in history. I want to take the opportunity to thank Rugby Australia for the strong level of collaboration in planning for this tour and we look forward to continuing to work with them over the next two years. I would also like to thank Premiership Rugby and the United Rugby Championship, whose cooperation has resulted in the longest preparation period for a tour in recent history, which gives us the best possible chance of a Series victory. We look forward to continuing to work with our hosts and our partners to create one of the best tours ever.
"As we begin the countdown to Australia in 2025, The British & Irish Lions brand and organisation has never been stronger with a global fan base of some 14 million people, a significant following and strong level of engagement through our various digital platforms, and a wide range of commercial partners comprised of some of the biggest brands and organisations in the world. Our ambition is to further build upon this position and make this upcoming tour the greatest Lions tour ever positioning it as the major global sporting event of 2025."
Queensland Minister for Tourism and Sport, Stirling Hinchcliffe:
"The 2025 British and Irish Lions Tour is one of the biggest events on the global Rugby calendar and its coming Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium, one of the world's best rectangular stadiums. Securing the first Test for Queensland is a big win for sport and our visitor economy including accommodation, hospitality and tourism operators and good jobs. The British and Irish Lions Tour joins the Rugby World Cup on Queensland's green and gold runway of major international sport to the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games."
The British & Irish Lions Tour in 2025 is proudly supported by the NSW Government via its tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW.
NSW Minister for Jobs and Tourism, John Graham:
"Securing the all-important third and potentially deciding match of the British & Irish Lions Test Series is a fantastic coup for Sydney and is definitely an event for locals and visitors to mark down in the calendar. Sydney is the birthplace of Australian Rugby and Accor Stadium, as the nation's largest rectangular venue, is going to be the perfect stage for what shapes as the most important match of the Series against the old foe in the Harbour City."
South Australia Minister for Sport, Katrine Hildyard:
"The Lions' visit to Adelaide will be momentous for Rugby in South Australia, and for our broader community, building upon last year's Test Match against the Springboks at Adelaide Oval. We can't wait to welcome the thousands of travelling Lions fans to SA to watch their team go head-to-head against the invitational Australia-New Zealand XV in the 'fourth Test'. As well as enjoying the Rugby, fans will also have the opportunity to enjoy the premium food, wine and experiences the state has to offer. The girls and boys who play rugby will be inspired by some of the best players in the world to be active and chase their sporting dreams."
Western Australia Tourism Minister, Rita Saffioti:
"The WA Government is proud to be hosting the opening match of this now 124-year-old touring tradition, which is set to bring thousands of fans to the award-winning Optus Stadium in 2025. This is another feather in the cap for Western Australia as a sporting destination and comes just a day after it was announced Perth would be one of eight global cities to host the HSBC SVNS over the next two years. The British & Irish Lions Rugby match will give visitors another great reason to come to Western Australia, as we continue to build the relationship with the UK as a key visitor market, through this opening Tour match. It is fantastic to add this match to our ever-growing major events calendar and encourage visitors to experience WA's wonderful natural experiences, premium hospitality offerings and world-class Rugby at the same time."
ACT Minister for Sport, Yvette Barry:
"This is great news and we look forward to welcoming The British & Irish Lions back to Canberra during their Australian Tour in 2025. I have no doubt the Canberra community will be keen to see the ACT Brumbies repeat their 2013 victory over the tourists at GIO Stadium in Canberra."
Brisbane Lord Mayor, Adrian Schrinner:
"Australian Rugby fans have waited 12 years for this series to return to home soil and with the first blockbuster match being hosted in Brisbane, they're in for a treat. Brisbane's local businesses are also set to score, with hotels, restaurants and tourism operators benefiting from the 30,000 fans expected to travel from the northern hemisphere, a key international market for the city. Securing not one but two coveted matches cements Brisbane's growing reputation as Australia's sporting capital in the lead up to the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games."
