The Pumas to face the British & Irish Lions

June 18, 2025
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Ultimate Rugby

This Friday, June 20th, Flag Day in our country, Argentine fans who come to cheer on the fans at the Aviva Stadium will paint Dublin's iconic stadium blue and white and will be part of a historic event. There, starting at 4:00 PM Argentina time (8:00 PM Ireland time), Los Pumas will face the British & Irish Lions for the first time in 20 years. The prestigious British and Irish team, led by Andy Farrell, will play their farewell match against the national team before their tour of Australia (nine matches, including three Test matches against the Wallabies), and it will be their first ever match in Ireland. For Felipe Contepomi's team, this will be the first of 13 matches they will play this year.

The Pumas arrived in Dublin on Saturday, June 14, and trained at the Old Belvedere Rugby Football Club in the Irish capital, while the Lions arrived on Sunday after completing a training camp in Portugal.

This week also marks the 60th anniversary of another event that marked the history of our rugby. On June 19, 1965, the Argentine national team defeated the Junior Springboks 11-6 at the legendary Ellis Park in Johannesburg, during the tour that marked the birth of Los Pumas.

It is with deep sadness that the Argentine Rugby Union bids farewell to Arturo Rodríguez Jurado, Puma #231, who passed away on Sunday, June 15, at the age of 81. El Trompa was a member of the historic Pumas team in 1965 and one of the most outstanding players in the history of the SIC.

Among those selected to face the British & Irish Lions are three Los Pumas players who, if included, will be wearing the Argentine jersey for the first time: Bautista Bernasconi, Boris Wenger, and Simón Benítez Cruz. This match, being a friendly, will not award caps to either Los Pumas or Lions players. It will also not count toward the rankings.

Below are the 23 Los Pumas players to face the British & Irish Lions in Dublin:

1. VIVAS , Mayco

2. MONTOYA , Julián (Captain)

3. SCLAVI , Joel

4. MOLINA , Franco

5. RUBIOLO , Pedro

6. MATERA , Pablo (Vice-captain)

7. GONZÁLEZ , Juan Martín

8. OVIEDO , Joaquín

9. GARCÍA , Gonzalo

10. BATHROBE , Tomás

11. MENDY , Ignacio