Australia plan to include Pacific Island nations in 2025 Lions tour

Australia plan to include Pacific Island nations in 2025 Lions tour as chairman hopes for 100,000-strong crowds with promises of ‘a very different style of rugby’ to South Africa series

  • Australia are hoping to invite the Pacific Island nations to the 2025 Lions tour
  • Chairman Hamish McLennan wants a blockbuster event for returning fans
  • Fiji and Tonga could be included in the tour to help build the excitement
  • McLennan has promised a better style of rugby than seen in South Africa series 

Australia are hoping to add a revolutionary twist to the 2025 Lions tour by inviting the Pacific Island nations to join the match roster.

The next hosts want to create a blockbuster spectacle for returning fans, with a pledge for entertaining rugby and the possibility of 100,000-strong crowds.

This tour of South Africa has been badly hurt by covid-enforced empty stadiums and one-sided warm up fixtures, but the sea of red is set to return in force in four years’ time.

Rugby Australia Chairman Hamish McLennan wants to bring Pacific Island nations to 2025 tour

It’s hoped the Lions tour in four years will be a blockbuster event with huge numbers of fans

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Rugby Australia Chairman Hamish McLennan told Sportsmail: ‘People are already excited about it. The Lions is the high point in the calendar but it’s the fans that complete it. We want it to be full blown, with as many of them over here as possible.

‘We want to anchor it back into what a traditional Lions tour looks like for the fans and the players. We want to deliver competitive games against our teams and we’d also like to bring in countries like Fiji and Tonga. We want to boost the marketability of the tour and that’s what a lot of people would love to see.’

Many fans have transferred over their savings after cancelling their trips to South Africa this summer. And they are likely to be presented with a very different brand of rugby to the Springboks offering, with the Wallabies undergoing a rebuild of their high-octane playing style.

‘Our guys will play a very different style of rugby,’ added McLennan. ‘We’re trying to rediscover the style of play that made us famous. That free-flowing attack. Go back to the Ella Brother, Jason Little, Tim Horan. Those guys were fabulous.

McLennan has also promised a very different tour to that seen this summer in South Africa

Fiji and Tonga could be included to help boost the excitement around a traditional Lions tour

‘The ratings were off the charts for our games against France last month. The games were great, close and entertaining. 

‘We’ve got some great young guys coming through. Noah Lolesio is already proving he can handle pressure moments and our Under 20s are going pretty well. 

‘We know we need to entertain. We’re competing against other winter sports in AFL and NRL and we’re aware we need to sell ourselves.’

While all of this year’s Test matches were relocated to Cape Town due to covid complications, the Australians are hoping to spread the fixtures around the country. 

The 100,000-capacity MCG in Melbourne has already expressed an interest in hosting a Test. This year’s tour was reduced to eight fixtures, with fewer midweek games, but McLennan has hopes for additional games in 2025.

‘The more games the better because it gets it out to the public,’ he added. 

There are hopes one Test could be staged at the 100,000-capacity MCG in Melbourne

‘Traditionally they’ve done 12 or 13 games and we want a traditional tour. Our midweek games against France, on winters nights when there was no other sport on, were an absolute smash.

‘We’re already seeing a lot of competition for stadia from state governments. They’re acutely aware of what a Lions tour can deliver and what a great event it is. 

‘We’ve got high- quality stadiums everywhere. We’ll spread it around and it’ll be fantastic. 

‘We’ve got a brand-new stadium up in Townsville, way north near the Great Barrier Reef. Our infrastructure is first class. 

‘We could do about 100,000 at the MCG and I’ve got no doubt we could fill that for a Lions match. Sydney, Perth, you name it. It’s going to be a superb event.’




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