Why the British and Irish Lions' uncertain future could be bad news for Australia

Independent

18 hours ago

A British and Irish Lions tour is sold, principally, on history and mystery. Anachronistic in its very concept, the actions and anecdotes of trips of yesteryear are woven into the rich red fabric adorning the current crop, links with the century and a half of touring parties evident at every moment before, during and after each squad's assembly. The cultural capital of the Lions is vast and trades, primarily, on that which has gone before – each trip bringing with it a chanc e to stir the nostalgic senses with a retrospective look. The mystery is inherent: how will a squad drawn at short notice handle the pressure of coming together to take on a big southern hemisphere beast?
Yet even the great bastions of heritage and history must eventually become forward-looking. A corporate and commercial behemoth in a sport lacking in that sort of commodity, this may be a time of great change for the British and Irish Lions as bigwigs look ahead to a future that feels more uncertain than usual.
Which is not to suggest that the Lions are in any kind of jeopardy. The strength of the brand ensures that the concept is surely safeguarded for the foreseeable future. But for the first time in recent memory, it feels like the concept itself could be tweaked. Already, of course, there is a women's tour on the way, the exact details still be confirmed for the 2027 trip to New Zealand but the planning well underway, even if there are plenty within the game who question whether the sport is ready for such a venture. That will precede a men's trip to take on the All Blacks two years later.
But speculation otherwise abounds, and there is no guarantee that the traditional quadrennial cycles remain intact. While the Lions' touring history stretches back to 188, the actual lineage of the now familiar format is not that long – it was only in 1989 that the tourists first travelled solely to Australia, and only in 1997 that the South Africa/Australia/New Zealand rotation was fully established after the fall of the apartheid regime.
The idea of taking a tour to France, which would represent a radical rethink, will not go away. Discussions have begun over possible pre-tour meetings in 2027 and 2029, while former Lions scrum half Matt Dawson recently told The Times that it would be 'insane' not to organise a full trip and itinerary. Such an idea would be glorious fun, with the fire and fervour of the French fans sure to cancel out the sea of red, and the depth of the sport in the country sure to provide compelling contests throughout the tour. A Lions tour would probably land well in a nation where club rugby is often king. It is a personal view, however, that a trip to less far-flung shore would have a rather different and likely inferior feel, though providing greater accessibility to a wider spectrum of supporters would be welcome.
Equally, those that criticise the Lions as being Anglocentric or imperialistic would relish a broadening of the boarders; the performance and passion shown by Argentina in their two pre-tour encounters in the last two decades show that a return for the Pumas to the touring schedule more regularly would be embraced. Equally, the development of Pacific Island nations, Japan and others could be aided – it feels a misstep that Fiji, particularly, were not an opponent on this trip.
An already congested calendar has limited room for expansion, though, which means that one of the traditional touring locations would surely have to be squeezed. For various reasons, it feels unlikely that New Zealand or South Africa would be under threat; Australia, by contrast, feel almost interminably imperilled in the modern landscape, and this has not necessarily been a buoyant start. The failure to release Wallabies to already under-powered Super Rugby Pacific sides has led to tour games generally won with a degree of comfort by the Lions, even amid plenty of errors.
This should be a time of prosperity and promise for the Wallabies as they gear up for a home World Cup in two years' time, and yet the alarm bells still ring. Financial pressures on the unions have eased slightly – aided by this Lions trip – but it is not long since the Melbourne Rebels were lost as an entity, while rugby union is ever more marginalised by the popularity of the NRL and AFL. The truth is that the opening skirmishes of this Lions tour barely made a dent in the sporting psyche; that will change once the Tests are underway a bit, but union generally has to be content to play second or third fiddle.
Within that comes a talent drain – the (expensive) luring of Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii is a mere breath into a prevailing wind that blows young talent to league from union. Amidst that, there are nonetheless intriguing reports of NRL superstar Kalyn Ponga hiring an agent in union to keep his options open – though it would be an All Blacks call that the son of Kiwi parents would covet.
Next summer will see South Africa and New Zealand tussle in a traditional tour of their own kind, expected to be sold on the strength of their rivalry as the Rugby Championship is ripped up in the name of bringing together two of the sport's fiercest foes in an encounter of greater meaning. What this means for Australia and Argentina is still somewhat unclear, but with the death of the traditional summer tour for the European nations with the advent of the Nations Cup in 2026, the established rugby calendar will certainly start to look rather different.
It all makes this a rather opportune moment for the Wallabies to prove a few doubters wrong. By ranking and recent record, they are the poorest of the Lions' opponents of the modern era but never doubt the capacity of an Australian sporting side to rise to the occasion.