Australia put on British and Irish Lions tour of a lifetime August 8, 2025 Before leaving a rainy Sydney to return to (a sunny!) Blighty, I sat down with fellow rugby fans in a Darling Harbour bistro to dissect a British and Irish Lions tour which, by all accounts, blew everyone away. It is fair to say that I was within the group of those who had questions as [...]
Red Roses must match footballers to give Lions Women’s tour best chance August 1, 2025 What a fantastic moment for women’s sport in the UK we’re living through right now. The Lionesses securing consecutive European Championships has created huge excitement and momentum – as well as a bit of extra pressure – for the Red Roses as they prepare to begin the campaign to win the Women’s Rugby World Cup [...]
Can British and Irish Lions tour save rugby in Australia? July 18, 2025 It is a crying shame to see rugby union drop so far behind Aussie Rules, the NRL and football Down Under, even as the British and Irish Lions get set to take on the Wallabies in the first of three Tests this weekend. But I am not surprised, given the state of Australian rugby at [...]
Fulham’s Craven Cottage could be future of new franchise Project Sevens July 17, 2025 The investment vehicle behind a new privately funded rugby sevens league set to launch in 2026 is targeting Craven Cottage as a host venue, City AM can reveal. Tom Burwell, chief executive of Bia Sports Group – the investment team behind newly promoted Premier League football club Sunderland – explained that the as-yet unnamed sevens [...]
NRL rugby league star Tuivasa-Sheck lined up for R360 move – reports July 16, 2025 Current rugby league star and former All Black Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is being lined up for a big-money switch to the breakaway R360 competition, according to reports in Australia. The move would see the 32-year-old New Zealand Warriors winger, one of the biggest names in the NRL, switch codes from league to union for the second [...]
Wimbledon, Euros and Test cricket set to boost pubs and supermarkets July 12, 2025 Pubs and supermarkets are bracing for a bumper weekend thanks to the heatwave and a deluge of live sport on TV including Wimbledon finals, Test cricket and the Lionesses. A British and Irish Lions tour match, England and Wales rugby internationals, other Women’s Euros fixtures, Tour de France cycling and a trilogy fight between Katie [...]
Lack of Welsh Lions shows stark reality of systemic failures July 11, 2025 Ahead of Wednesday’s British and Irish Lions midweek game against the Brumbies in the Australian capital of Canberra I came across a shocking statistic. The match was the first since 1899 not to include a Welshman from the matchday 23. I am not surprised that it has happened on this tour given only two Welshmen [...]
British and Irish Lions: Aussie pubs certain there’s enough Guinness July 7, 2025 British and Irish Lions rugby fans can fly to Australia assured that the “Guinness will be flowing” after pub chiefs Down Under quelled fears that bars could run dry this month. Australian reports raised concerns surrounding a potential lack of beer stockpiles ahead of the Lions’ three-Test series against the Wallabies, which begins on 19 [...]
British and Irish Lions should tour France and Argentina July 4, 2025 While watching the British and Irish Lions take on the Queensland Reds on Wednesday, I started thinking about what other sides across the world would make good opponents for the touring team. The Lions of late have always ventured to the same three nations – South Africa, Australia and New Zealand – and they will [...]
Women’s sport needs to convert online fandom into ticket sales July 3, 2025 With England’s Euros defence getting underway on Saturday, how does women’s sport convert online fandom into ticket sales? Attendances down, TV viewing figures falling, but TikTok and Instagram metrics up. This is the current state of engagement with women’s professional sport in the United Kingdom. Phone surfing can be monetised, but there is an urgent [...]