World champions Australia are set to embark on a historic tour of England in 2025, participating in three Test matches—the first Ashes series held in more than two decades.
RL Commercial, the commercial division of the Rugby Football League, has announced that “initial conversations” have taken place with the Australian Rugby League Commission regarding the relocation of the series to England. Originally scheduled to occur in Australia, the revamped Test series was part of adjustments to the international rugby league calendar announced in 2023, but plans have now shifted.
This tour marks the first time since 2003 that the Kangaroos will compete in an Ashes series, which previously featured contests between Australia and Great Britain. A planned tour in 2020, intended as a lead-up to the 2021 Rugby League World Cup, was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
It has been eight years since England last faced Australia in a home international, where the Kangaroos triumphed with a 36-18 victory at the London Stadium during the 2016 Four Nations tournament.
“We are excited by the possibility of bringing the Kangaroos to these shores for a three-match series for the first time in more than 20 years, and we are starting work on the feasibility of such a tour,” stated RL Commercial. “We believe this would be welcomed by our England team, by British Rugby League supporters, by the British sporting public, and by the current generation of Australian players who would relish the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of so many great players of the past.”
The original Ashes series was contested as a best-of-three format between Australia and Great Britain, with the inaugural series taking place in 1908 and a total of 39 matches held between the two sides over the years. The last complete Ashes series, conducted in 2003, saw the Kangaroos achieve a three-game whitewash.
These discussions have arisen following changes to the international rugby league calendar in 2023, notably after France withdrew from hosting the 2026 Rugby League World Cup due to a lack of guaranteed support from local and national governments.
Australia, fresh off their victory at the 2022 World Cup held in England, is now set to host the men’s, women’s, and wheelchair World Cups in October and November 2026, with matches also planned in Papua New Guinea.
