The Women’s British & Irish Lions tour kicks off in 2027 but where will it be held and when? Find out all the information here.
The women’s British and Irish Lions tour will kick-off in September 2027 for the team’s inaugural tour of New Zealand.
Many had wanted to see a shake up and see the team potentially tour somewhere like France, where women’s rugby crowds have been booming for several years. But organisers took a view that New Zealand would be a successful fit and so the Lions will play three Tests against the Black Ferns.
Read more: Women’s Lions to tour New Zealand
Fans may be worried that a women’s Lions team will be full of England players. The Red Roses have been the dominant force in the sport and are currently on a run of 38 consecutive wins. However, the Lions head coach Jo Yapp has said she is excited to see players from across all four nations put their hands up for the squad.
Stars outside of England who are in good form and could make the cut are making themselves known already. Players like Ireland’s Aoife Wafer, Wales’ Kelsey Jones and Scotland’s Rachel Malcolm will be among those wanting to pull on the jersey.
But when will the squad be announced and what are the fixtures? Below will tell you all the information you need to know.
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Women’s British and Irish Lions tour 2027: key information
Dates: 4-25 September 2027
Participating teams: British and Irish Lions, New Zealand
UK TV coverage: The TV coverage has not yet been confirmed.
Ben Calveley (CEO of The British & Irish Lions), Jo Yapp (British & Irish Lions Women’s Head Coach), Carol Isherwood (OBE & Chair of the Lions Women’s Committee) and Ieuan Evans (MBE & Chair of The British & Irish Lions) are pictured during a British & Irish Lions Media Conference (Getty Images)
Women’s British and Irish Lions tour 2027 fixtures
So far there have been five fixtures confirmed for the tour, including three Tests.
Read more: W6N fixtures
Saturday 4 September 2027
- Lions v Black Ferns XV
Semenoff Stadium, Whangārei
Kick-off: TBC
Saturday 11 September 2027
- Lions v Black Ferns
Go Media Stadium, Auckland
Kick-off: TBC
Tuesday 14 September 2027
- Lions v Invitational XV
FMG Stadium Waikato, Hamilton
Kick-off: TBC
Saturday 18 September 2027
- Lions v Black Ferns
Sky Stadium, Wellington
Kick-off: TBC
Saturday 25 September 2027
- Lions v Black Ferns
One NZ Stadium, Christchurch
Kick-off: TBC
The New Zealand Haka during the Pacific Four Series (Getty Images)
British & Irish Lions history
The British and Irish Lions were formed in 1888 by Alfred Shaw and Arthur Shrewsbury with players from England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland coming together in one team. But it was not until 1891 that the team were officially recognised by the Rugby Football Union. At this time it was only a men’s team that was created.
The team toured every four years from there but it was not until 1924 that they were first called the Lions, which was officially adopted in 1950.
Read more: Unofficial 2025 Lions tour awards
There have been several famous tours packed full of legends of the game, the most recent seeing Andy Farrell coach his team to a tour win over Australia in 2025.
However, it took 136 years after the first unofficial men’s tour took place for a women’s tour to be detailed.
In 2024, officials set out the team’s debut year as 2027 where they would tour New Zealand.
This will not be a one-off tour either with it understood that there will now be a women’s Lions tour every four years, as the men’s team do.
Women’s British and Irish Lions head coach: Jo Yapp
Jo Yapp smiles as she is introduced during a British & event (Getty Images)
Former Australia head coach Jo Yapp was announced as the head coach in May 2026. The 46-year-old, who also works for England as a pathways coach, is one of the best coaches in the world and has previous experience in the club game too as she was in charge of Worcester Warriors until the side folded.
Yapp, who will work part-time for the Lions from July 2026 and turn full-time in 2027, said she was “honoured” to be named boss for the inaugural tour and has already saught council from the men’s most recent head coach Andy Farrell.
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She said: “I think it is really important to draw on the experiences before. I have already spoken to Andy Farrell, who was really helpful, so my plan is to make sure we pick the brains of those who have gone before because it would be naive not to use that experience.
“He was super open, which was really lovely. One of the things he talked about in terms of when you are pulling together your staff is that you get the right people there. The people you trust, you can work with. I think that is massively important for me when I am considering people to bring together.”
Yapp has also not confirmed when she will be annonuncing the rest of her coaching staff but it is thought that will take place in early 2027.
When is the Women’s Lions squad announcement?
There has been no official confirmation on a date for when Yapp will announced her squad but this section will be updated when that information is released.
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