The UK and Ireland Lions will begin their summer 2025 tour at an exhibition with Argentina in Dublin, Ireland on Friday.
After months of planning, Andy Farrell made his debut as a coach for the Lions, leading the first 38-man team to land only the second series victory of the century.
“We know that Argentina will challenge us widely in advance, so Friday nights will not only be a tough contest, but it will be a great opportunity for all our fans,” Farrell said.
This is everything you need to know.
When is the game?
when: Friday, June 20th at 8pm (Saturday at 5:05am)
where: Dublin’s Aviva Stadium
Match Official: James Dollman (New Zealand)
How to see
The match will be shown live at Sky Sports in the UK and Stan Sports in Australia. You can also follow ESPN’s live blogs and follow the extensive news and feature coverage.
Marcus Smith was given the first opportunity to impress at fullback after being picked to start, while 20-year-old Henry Pollock was picked on the bench.
Farrell selected his first team as Lions coach on Wednesday, with Smith taking the 15th place jersey. He has recently switched between England’s fly half and fullback, and Farrell previously boasted his diversity as an important reason behind his tour choice.
Backrow Pollock made his English debut in Northampton’s fantastic campaign before stealing the headline when the team was named in May. He hopes for a chance to make his mark from the bench.
Julian Montoya becomes the captain of Argentine as he tries to ruin the Lion opener. Farrell chose to exclude the players who starred in last weekend’s Premiership Finals, but Argentina decided to start Leicester’s captain Montoya.
Meanwhile, Bautista Bernasconi, Boris Wenger and Simon Benitez Cruz are set to make their Argentine debuts.
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– Complete 38-person Lions Team
– Watch: The moment Maroije was nominated as captain of the Lions