The 2025 England Lions and Lionesses tour of Australia will be a joint tour of Australia by the England men's and England women's national rugby league teams. The tour will see the return of The Ashes and will occur following the conclusions of the domestic seasons in the UK and Australia.
Background
editNew International Calendar
editFollowing France withdrawing as host and the subsequent cancellation of the 2025 Rugby League World Cup,[1][2] the International Rugby League saw need to revamp the international calendar. The confirmation of the replacement 2026 Rugby League World Cup came with it a selection of new and returning international rugby league competitions and tours between 2025 and 2030, including the return of The Ashes. The tournament return will begin with England's 2025 tour of Australia, which will see the inaugural women's Ashes being played, and Australia's 2028 tour of England. The 2025 Ashes will be the first since the 2003 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France.[3][4]
Great Britain or England
editGreat Britain were Australia's traditional Ashes opponents, having played against each other from 1908 to 2003. The Great Britain side started to disbanded started with the 1995 Rugby League World Cup in favour of the four home nations playing as individuals sides. This process was completed with the 2007 All Golds Tour, the centenary of the first ever international tour.
In 2024, the Rugby Football League considered the return of the Great Britain team for the 2025 tour, and possibly all future away tours, with the hope that the return of a traditional sporting brand would help connect more people to the team.[5] However, in September of that year, the governing body confirmed during the new England kit launch that England would continue the 2025 tour as planned.[6] A fan poll was conducted in regards to this subject.[7]
Rugby League Las Vegas
editIn 2023, ahead of the 2024 season, Australia's National Rugby League launched the Rugby League Las Vegas event to open their domestic season.[8][9] For the 2025, this was expanded to the UK's Super League with one regular season fixture being played.[10][11] Further, the 2025 event will also feature a women's test match between Australia and England, which was later confirmed to be match one of the inaugural women's Ashes Series with the remaining two to be completed during the tour.[12]
Men's Ashes
editFixtures to be confirmed
Women's Ashes
editTest 1
edit
Tests 2 and 3
editFixtures to be confirmed
References
edit- ^ "France pulls out of hosting Rugby League World Cup". BBC Sport. 15 May 2023. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
- ^ Bower, Aaron (15 May 2023). "2025 Rugby League World Cup in doubt after France pull out of staging event". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
- ^ "Southern hemisphere to host 2026 World Cup". BBC Sport. August 3, 2023.
- ^ "Reduced Rugby League World Cup to take place in 2026". The Guardian.
- ^ Bower, Aaron (2024-07-15). "RFL considers reviving Great Britain Lions brand to replace England for tour". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-09-07.
- ^ "England Rugby League kit for 2024/25 revealed". www.rugby-league.com. Retrieved 2024-09-07.
- ^ https://www.seriousaboutrl.com/rfl-great-britain-rugby-league-95469/amp/
- ^ "The NRL is going to Vegas ... To play on one of the smallest rugby league fields ever". 28 August 2023.
- ^ "Sea Eagles, Roosters get wins in Australia's National Rugby League season opener in Las Vegas". Associated Press News. 3 March 2024.
- ^ "Super League in Las Vegas: Wigan Warriors and Warrington Wolves set for showdown at Allegiant Stadium in 2025". www.skysports.com. 10 July 2024. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
- ^ "Wigan Warriors to play Warrington Wolves in Las Vegas in 2025".
- ^ "Great Britain legend endorses Lions' return as more details of tour emerge". Love Rugby League. 2024-08-21. Retrieved 2024-09-07.