The build up is over and it is time for business when the 1st test between Australia and the British & Irish Lions kicks off at the Sunorp Stadium in Brisbane on Saturday 19 July. In this article we will track all thing betting related from handicaps to weather and team news before finally landing on a bet or two prior to kick off.
AUSTRALIA V B&I LIONS BETTING UPDATE AND SELECTION
Posted 18 July 21h54
The money continues to pour onto the Lions who are now -11.5 from -7.5.
I agree with the money but the line looks about right and I will turn my attention to the points markets.
Total points are priced at 51.5 and given how much is on the line in this 1st test I am expecting a titanic struggle.
The weather looks ok with clear skies and humidity in the high 70's but I am in the unders camp.
Lions test matches have been traditionally low scoring with 45 points the highest in New Zealand in 2017 and 39 points in South Africa in 2021.
BET: 4 units under 51.5 points at 0.93/1 at Betxchange
BETTING UPDATE
Posted 17 July 14h24
Team news has seen some movement in the betting with the line going from -8.5 to -10.5 at Betxchange and now back to -9.5 Lions.
The points line has edged up to 51.5 from the opening call of 48.5.
Line Ups
Posted 07:30 17th July
Australia:15 Tom Wright, 14 Max Jorgensen, 13 Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, 12 Len Ikitau, 11 Harry Potter, 10 Tom Lynagh, 9 Jake Gordon, 8 Harry Wilson (c), 7 Fraser McReight, 6 Nick Champion de Crespigny, 5 Jeremy Williams, 4 Nick Frost, 3 Allan Alaalatoa, 2 Matt Faessler, 1 James Slipper
Replacements: 16 Billy Pollard, 17 Angus Bell, 18 Tom Robertson, 19 Tom Hooper, 20 Carlo Tizzano, 21 Tate McDermott, 22 Ben Donaldson, 23 Andrew Kellaway
British and Irish Lions: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Tommy Freeman, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 James Lowe, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park; 1 Ellis Genge, 2 Dan Sheehan, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 4 Maro Itoje (c), 5 Joe McCarthy, 6 Tadhg Beirne, 7 Tom Curry, 8 Jack Conan.
Replacements: 16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Andrew Porter, 18 Will Stuart, 19 Ollie Chessum, 20 Ben Earl, 21 Alex Mitchell, 22 Marcus Smith, 23 Bundee Aki.
1st TEST BETTING AND WEATHER
Posted 13 July 19h49
The Lions are 1/3 to win the Series with Australia 5/2 and the drawn series 25/1
The B&I Lions to win 3-0 is trading at 11/10 in the correct series score market.
This 1st Test handicap has been sitting at +7.5 and +8.5 Australia for a few weeks and the +8.5 is currently the line.
Total points is 48.5 and with the possibility of rain and humidity likely in the high 80's (weather from TimeandDate.com) I am leaning unders but am not rushing in,
Australia v British & Irish Lions – 1st Test
Posted 13 July 18h20
Date: Saturday, 19 July 2025
Kick-off: 12:00 SAST
Venue: Lang Park (Suncorp Stadium), Brisbane
Referee: Ben O'Keeffe (New Zealand)
The British & Irish Lions head into the opening Test of their 2025 tour of Australia with a perfect record from their five warm-up matches.
Their tour began in emphatic style with a 54–7 demolition of the Western Force in Perth, where Dan Sheehan crossed inside the opening minute and the Lions ran in eight tries. They followed that with another convincing victory, 52–12 over the Queensland Reds, with Tommy Freeman grabbing a brace.
The Waratahs clash in Sydney proved more of a grind, as the Lions edged a 21–10 win in a match marred by handling errors and turnovers. Huw Jones bagged a brace, but the Waratahs comfortably beat the 39.5 handicap.
A tough midweek test came against the ACT Brumbies, the strongest provincial opposition, but the Lions passed with a 36–24 win, although once again they were well short of the bookmakers line set at -29.5.
They wrapped up their non-Test fixtures with a commanding 48–0 shutout of the Invitational Australia & New Zealand XV in Adelaide on Saturday. Duhan van der Merwe stole the headlines with a hat-trick, while the Lions forwards controlled proceedings from start to finish.
With five wins from five and squad combinations now well-tested, Andy Farrell’s men look primed for the first of three Tests against the Wallabies. Selection decisions will be tight, particularly in the back row and midfield, but they go in with momentum and conficence.
Australia come into the first Test against the British & Irish Lions with mixed recent form and a point to prove given they are hosting the 2027 Rugby World Cup. Their most recent outing was a narrow 21–18 win over Fiji in Newcastle 2 weeks ago game where they started -15 point favourites.
Last year, the Wallabies endured a tough Rugby Championship, suffering back-to-back defeats to South Africa and heavy losses to New Zealand, including a 13–33 defeat in Wellington. While they managed a gritty 20–19 win over Argentina, they were thrashed 67–27 in the reverse fixture.
The end-of-year European tour brought further challenges. Although they beat England in a 42–37 thriller and hammered Wales (52–20) they lost to Ireland (22–19), and went down 27-13 to Scotland.
Despite the results, Schmidt has had time to reshape the squad and implement his systems. The return of key players from injury and the emergence of fresh talent give Australia a chance to build something more competitive heading into this high-stakes Test series.
This preview will be updated with the latest betting on Sunday night
