British and Irish Lions tour clears £30m Rugby Australia debt
Revenue generated by the British and Irish Lions rugby tour to Australia has helped the hosts to be debt-free for the first time since 2021.
The nine-match, three-Test tour Down Under allowed Rugby Australia to pay off the £30m it owed Pacific Equity Partners having taken out a £39m loan in 2023.
It is the first time since 2021 that the sporting body has been able to call itself debt-free, when it took out an initial £19.5m loan with Ares Management, whose portfolio includes Eagle Football Holdings, the Professional Fighters League and Atletico Madrid’s Atletico Holdco.
The boost is a financial boon for Rugby Australia, which has been rocked by a tumultuous monetary standing for a number of years.
And it is hoped that debt-free status can help it invest in the game ahead of the Rugby World Cup in 2027, which will be hosted in Australia.
British and Irish Lions help fill coffers
“My ambition is to establish an investment fund as quickly as possible,” Rugby Australia chief executive Phil Waugh said.
“Given the over-performance on the Lions and the 2025 year, we’ll have cash flow to carry us through 2026, and ideally we have enough surplus to actually establish the investment fund sooner rather than later.”
The 2025 British and Irish Lions tour saw the tourists win 2-1 across three Tests in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, while the tour was estimated to have generated around £50m for Rugby Australia.
Travelling players from the Home Nations were paid for their participation in the tour, while the British and Irish Lions entity was handed a healthy windfall from the tour.
The side will head to New Zealand in four year’s time but the schedule beyond that is yet to be finalised, with growing calls for Argentina and France to be included in the schedule.
Australia currently hosts the British and Irish Lions once every 12 years.