The first test of the Lions’ tour of Australia will take place on July 19, at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium. (David Rogers/Getty Images)

The British and Irish Lions rugby union touring side has named UK radio broadcaster TalkSport as its exclusive audio broadcast partner for the team’s upcoming 2025 tour of Australia.

TalkSport will provide over 200 hours of radio commentary around the tour, including exclusive live radio commentary for each match in the tour, as well as interviews, shoulder programming around it, and podcasts surrounding the tour from Australia.

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This deal also includes live radio coverage of the pre-tour 1888 Cup match, which will take place in Dublin, Ireland, against Argentina on June 20.

The Lions Tour will be prominently presented across TalkSport’s social media and digital channels, and fans will be able to interact with these as well as phone in to the radio shows to talk.

TalkSport first signed on to broadcast the Lions ahead of the team’s 2013 Tour, and has covered each of the subsequent two Lions tours, making this the fourth edition of the partnership.

Speaking on the deal, Lions chief commercial officer Tom Halsey stated: “The [Talksport] team was an outstanding broadcast partner to The British & Irish Lions during the 2013, 2017, and 2021 Tours and we look forward to building on our successful partnership.

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“Thousands of fans back home will be listening as the action unfolds, and we are delighted to have TalkSport providing our loyal supporters with the highest quality build-up, commentary, analysis, and discussion.”

The first test of the Lions’ tour of Australia will take place on July 19, at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium. Melbourne Cricket Ground will host the second test on July 26, while the final test will be played at Sydney’s Accor Stadium in Sydney Olympic Park on August 2.

The high-profile quadrennial test series is a major revenue-driving opportunity for the team’s organizer, which has secured a number of major tie-ups in anticipation.

Most recently, global logistics firm DHL extended its association with the Lions, which has run since 2005, to cover the upcoming tour.

As was the case during the 2021 tour of South Africa (the Lions tour each of Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand, once every 12 years), players’ shirts will have the DHL logo on their backs.

GlobalData Sport valued the DHL-Lions tie-up for the 2021 series at $4 million.

As logistics partner, DHL will be responsible for the transportation of the team’s equipment throughout the tour, including scrum machines and other training gear.

Other partners covering the tour include  Qatar Airways as title sponsor, as well as Charles Tyrwhitt, Howden, Canterbury, and Fanatics.