Ex-All Blacks coach to face the Lions as plans for AUNZ combo revealed

All Blacks’ World Cup coach Ian Foster will coach against the British and Irish Lions after being named on the staff of the combined AUNZ Invitational XV to face the tourists in Adelaide.

Foster, now coach of Toyota Verblitz in Japan, is the first name linked to the combo team – which will be the first time in 30 years players from Australia and New Zealand have combined for an international match.

Rugby Australia said Foster’s appointment was not necessarily as head coach – with more names to be added.

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So far the makeup of the team is a mystery. Selectors could opt for players on the fringes of Wallabies selection who have performed well in Super Rugby but just missed out on the national squad, or opt for players such as Michael Hooper, who has just relaunched his career under Foster in Japan.

Foster was released after losing the World Cup final in 2023, and current Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt was on his staff.

The news comes as Rugby Australia has locked down the nine-match schedule, and put a final round of general tickets on sale.

The tour will include an historic clash with the First Nations & Pasifika XV at Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium on Tuesday, July 22.

This new ticket release includes the opening Test between the Wallabies and the Lions at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium on Saturday, July 19, where the initial ticket allocation was exhausted in just 60 minutes last year.

Melbourne’s MCG will host the second Test where supporters will have the opportunity to be part of the largest ever crowd for a Lions Test, with the iconic venue capable of hosting more than 100,000 spectators, which would surpass the current Lions Test record attendance of 84,188 at Accor Stadium in 2001.

Sydney’s Accor Stadium is set to be the location for another potential decider between the two sides, with both previous series going down to the wire, with the Wallabies winning 2-1 in 2001, before the Lions squared the ledger in 2013.

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As part of the final release, all ticket categories will be available for purchase, allowing for more accessible tickets across all matches until they are sold out.

The Lions will also play all four Super Rugby Pacific clubs throughout the Tour of Australia with the ACT Brumbies famously beating the international side in 2013.

The 2025 British and Irish Lions Tour of Australia

Western Force v British & Irish Lions at 5:45pm AWST on Saturday 28 June at Optus Stadium, Perth

Queensland Reds v British & Irish Lions at 7:45pm AEST on Wednesday 2 July at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

New South Wales Waratahs v British & Irish Lions at 7:45pm AEST on Saturday 5 July at Allianz Stadium, Sydney

ACT Brumbies v British & Irish Lions at 7:45pm AEST on Wednesday 9 July at GIO Stadium, Canberra

AUNZ Invitational XV v British & Irish Lions at 7:45pm AEST on Saturday 12 July at Adelaide Oval, Adelaide

Wallabies v British & Irish Lions at 7:45pm AEST on Saturday July 19 at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

First Nations & Pasifika XV v British & Irish Lions at 7:45pm AEST on Tuesday 22 July at Marvel Stadium, Melbourne

Wallabies v British & Irish Lions at 7:45pm AEST on Saturday July 26 at Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne

Wallabies v British & Irish Lions at 7:45pm AEST on Saturday August 2 at Accor Stadium, Sydney

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