England’s Maro Itoje named British and Irish Lions rugby captain

LONDON – England’s Maro Itoje will captain the British and Irish Lions on their tour of Australia after being appointed by coach Andy Farrell on May 8.

The 30-year-old Saracens lock becomes the first black player to captain the touring side.

“It’s hard to articulate,” said Itoje after taking the stage at London’s O2 Arena for a squad announcement where fans were present for the first time.

“It’s a tremendous honour, it’s a tremendous privilege. You think about the people who have held this position before and it’s remarkable.

“It’s an honour and I will do my very best to make sure I can contribute to a successful tour.”

One of the few sure Test starters, Itoje will be embarking on his third Lions tour after being selected as the youngest player in New Zealand in 2017 and playing a standout role in South Africa in 2021.

Appointed England captain in place of Jamie George in January, Itoje led them to second place in the 2025 Six Nations Championship with four wins in a row.

The Lions have a game against Argentina in Dublin, Ireland on June 20. They will then have five tour games before the first Test in Brisbane on July 19. The second and third Tests are in Melbourne on July 26 and in Sydney on Aug 2.

The first Englishman to lead the Lions since Martin Johnson in 2001, the London-born son of Nigerian parents was the obvious choice after Ireland captain Caelan Doris suffered a shoulder injury.

Itoje showed he was captain material from an early age, leading the England Under-20s to Junior World Cup triumph in 2014, though he became Saracens captain only this season.

“He has thrived on the England captaincy. He played really well in the Six Nations, but he has played even better for us since then. Maro has absolutely thrived on all of that leadership. Maro is very much a leader by what he does and how consistent he is,” Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall told the Guardian this week.

But there was no place in the 38-man squad for former England captain Owen Farrell, the son of Andy Farrell.

The 33-year-old is barred from representing England after deciding to play his club rugby outside the country at Paris-based Racing 92, and has suffered an injury-hit debut season in France.

Henry Pollock may be at the other end of the experience scale to Farrell, but the Northampton back-row has become the latest bolter to be included in a Lions squad.

The 20-year-old rising star made his England debut only in March, but came off the bench to score two tries during a 68-14 rout of Wales in Cardiff in the last round of the Six Nations.

In other news, New Zealand Rugby recorded sizeable losses in yearly accounts released on May 8, with chief executive Mark Robinson saying its commercial model was “not sustainable” despite a contentious private equity cash injection.

He pointed to high fixed costs, which include player wages, as the governing body booked losses of NZ$19.5 million (S$15 million) in its annual report for 2024. He said the current financial model was “not sustainable” and there was “much work to do to get the shape of our game right”.

New Zealand Rugby oversees the All Blacks men’s team, a highly lucrative global sporting brand in their own right. But critics say they have not capitalised on their marketability in the way other leading brands in sports such as Formula One and English football have done.

Sponsorship deals and broadcast rights helped to put US$170 million (S$220.3 million) in the governing body’s coffers in 2024, the accounts showed, which was a “record level of income”. But foreign exchange turbulence and investment in other areas of the business turned this into a loss.

“New Zealand Rugby retains an incredibly strong balance sheet, which is vital for rugby in New Zealand and its ability to weather any major shocks,” said chair and former All Blacks captain David Kirk.

US private equity firm Silver Lake secured a US$120 million stake in New Zealand Rugby and the All Blacks in 2022.

Under that deal, Silver Lake, a fund manager specialising in private equity investments and whose growing stable of sports interests includes Manchester City, took a 5.8 per cent stake in a new commercial entity operated by New Zealand Rugby.

New Zealand Rugby was hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, and its provinces have been losing money for several years as spectator numbers fall.

In women’s rugby, World Cup hosts England will play two warmup matches against Spain and France in August before the tournament begins, the governing Rugby Football Union (RFU) said on May 7.

The Six Nations champions and two-time World Cup winners will host Spain in Leicester on Aug 2 and then travel to take on France in Mont-de-Marsan a week later.

Spain will appear at their first World Cup since 2017 after winning the WXV 3 tournament in 2024, while France will be aiming to reach their first final of the tournament having finished third on seven occasions.

England last won the World Cup in 2014 and have reached the final in all but one of the nine editions so far. The Red Roses will go in as strong favourites having won all 25 matches since losing the last final to New Zealand in 2022.

France pushed England hard in the recent Six Nations, with England clinching the Grand Slam on the final day in a thrilling 43-42 win over the French at Twickenham to claim championship victory for the seventh successive time.

The World Cup begins on Aug 22 with England playing the United States in Sunderland. Samoa and Australia are with them in Pool A. reuters, afp