The British and Irish Lions are embarking on their quadrennial southern hemisphere tour this summer. After winning the first Test and losing the final two in South Africa four years ago, the Lions are heading to Australia with hopes of righting those wrongs.
Even before the clashes with Australia, there will be plenty of live betting interest in the Lions. They play a number of tour matches prior to the Test series, kicking off in Dublin against Argentina.
When does the Lions tour start?
The Lions tour begins with a match against Argentina in Dublin on June 20. This is the first warm-up match for the squad before they begin the main tour on June 28 with a match in Perth against Western Force.
When does the Lions tour finish?
The final match of the Lions tour is on August 2 against Australia in Sydney. The previous three Lions tours have gone down to a deciding Test, so there’s a good chance the match in Sydney will have an impact on the outcome of the series, rather than being a dead rubber in front of a massive crowd.
Who are the Lions playing on tour?
The British and Irish Lions are facing Australia in a three-match Test series on their tour.
During the tour, the Lions also play a number of matches against Australian opposition, including Western Force, Queensland Reds, New South Wales Waratahs, ACT Brumbies, and the ANZAC XV.
Who is the Lions captain?
Maro Itoje, a lock with 93 caps for England, was named as the Lions captain. Itoje was widely tipped for the honour before the squad was announced.
Despite his wide-ranging experience on the field, the England international admits he is still nervous about the prospect of leading the Lions.
“Obviously the magnitude of the game will be so much higher than a lot of what I’ve done and experienced before, but I feel like I’m ready.
“I feel like I’m ready to do the role. I think I’m ready to do the job and I gain confidence from the quality of coaches we have, the quality of support staff we have and the quality of personnel we have within our squad.
“Of course, I think you would be a little bit worried if I said I wasn’t nervous at all.”
Do the Lions lose many warm-up matches?
In a word, no. The Lions have an excellent record across their warm-up matches in the professional era and have never lost by double-digit points.
While they have never won all of their warm-up matches, defeats are generally rare. Every tour in the 21st century has seen the Lions win over half of their warm-up matches.
Lions vs Australia Series Odds
The latest rugby betting markets at William Hill make the Lions clear favourites over Australia.
- Australia – 5/2
- Draw – 28/1
- British and Irish Lions – 1/3
Lions vs Australia Correct Score Odds
- Australia 1-0 Lions – 500/1
- Lions 1-0 Australia – 250/1
- Australia 2-0 Lions – 66/1
- Lions 2-0 Australia – 33/1
- Australia 2-1 Lions – 10/3
- Lions 2-1 Australia – 13/8
- Australia 3-0 Lions – 12/1
- Lions 3-0 Australia – 11/10
Lions Tour Schedule
- June 20 – Argentina, Dublin
- June 28 – Western Force, Perth
- July 2 – Queensland Reds, Brisbane
- July 5 – New South Wales Waratahs, Sydney
- July 9 – ACT Brumbies, Canberra
- July 12 – ANZAC XV, Adelaide
- July 19 – Australia, Brisbane
- July 22 – First Nations & Pasifika XV, Melbourne
- July 26 – Australia, Melbourne
- August 2 – Australia, Sydney
Lions Squad For 2025 Series
- Finlay Bealham (Connacht and Ireland) – in for Zander Fagerson
- Tadhg Beirne (Munster and Ireland)
- Ollie Chessum (Leicester Tigers and England)
- Jack Conan (Leinster and Ireland)
- Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks and England)
- Scott Cummings (Glasgow Warriors and Scotland)
- Tom Curry (Sale Sharks and England)
- Ben Earl (Saracens and England)
- Tadhg Furlong (Leinster and Ireland)
- Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears and England)
- Maro Itoje (Saracens and England)
- Rónan Kelleher (Leinster and Ireland)
- Joe McCarthy (Leinster and Ireland)
- Jac Morgan (Ospreys and Wales)
- Henry Pollock (Northampton Saints and England)
- Andrew Porter (Leinster and Ireland)
- James Ryan (Leinster and Ireland)
- Pierre Schoeman (Edinburgh Rugby and Scotland)
- Dan Sheehan (Leinster and Ireland)
- Will Stuart (Bath Rugby and England)
- Josh van der Flier (Leinster and Ireland)
- Bundee Aki (Connacht and Ireland)
- Elliot Daly (Saracens and England)
- Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints and England)
- Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster and Ireland)
- Mack Hansen (Connacht and Ireland)
- Huw Jones (Glasgow Warriors and Scotland)
- Hugo Keenan (Leinster and Ireland)
- Blair Kinghorn (Toulouse and Scotland)
- James Lowe (Leinster and Ireland)
- Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints and England)
- Garry Ringrose (Leinster and Ireland)
- Finn Russell (Bath Rugby and Scotland)
- Fin Smith (Northampton Saints and England)
- Marcus Smith (Harlequins and England)
- Sione Tuipulotu (Glasgow Warriors and Scotland)
- Duhan van der Merwe (Edinburgh Rugby and Scotland)
- Tomos Williams (Gloucester Rugby and Wales)
*Odds correct at time of writing – prices subject to change*
