The Ashes returns to rugby league after a 22-year hiatus as England host Australia at Wembley Stadium in the first of a three-match series.
Not since 2003 has an Ashes series been contested in the 13-man code but Shaun Wane’s England side will aim against rugby league’s dominant force as for the first Test.
Wane between the sides but victory would given Australia have lost just one match since 2019 and were on a record streak of 13 straight Ashes series wins before the 22-year hiatus.
The teams haven’t squared off at all since the 2017 World Cup final, when the Kangaroos edged a tense affair in Brisbane 6-0, and this is an opportunity for a modern generation of English rugby league stars to write their names into the history books.
Follow all the action with our live blog below:
England v Australia – first rugby league Ashes Test live updates
- England face Australia at Wembley in rugby league Ashes | Live on BBC One
- Ashes series returns to rugby league after 22-year hiatus
- Wembley Stadium hosts first Test in three-match series, before Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium and Headingley in Leeds
- TEAM NEWS: Mikey Lewis set to start at scrum half for England ahead of Harry Smith
England 0-0 Australia, 9 mins
14:42 , Luke BakerThe Australians going sideways in attack so far – superb defensive discipline by England. They haven’t really had ball in hand in the English half yet.
Superb carry from Dom Young, who powers through an Isaah Yeo tackle, gets England on the front foot and George Williams with a clever grubber through finds Herbie Farnworth. The English NRL star’s pass nearly sends England away but Reece Walsh manages to intercept. Will be a new set of six for England in Kangaroo territory though.
Yeo off for an HIA after getting clattered in that attempted tackle.
England 0-0 Australia, 7 mins
14:38 , Luke BakerWilliams, to Welsby, to Farnworth and England crash into the Aussie 22. But Morgan Knowles spills in contact, trying to find Mikey Lewis with the offload. Chance gone for the hosts
England 0-0 Australia, 5 mins
14:36 , Luke BakerA first bit of noise from the crowd as Jack Welsby runs left and finds a little space before being stopped. Ooof! Big hit from the Australia defence although Dom Young does well with the next carry to get England on the front-foot once more.
John Bateman with a nice tackle early in the next Australian set and then the defensive intensity pays off! Mistake from the Kangaroos as Jake Wardle comes in on the tackle and Hudson Young spills forward. English scrum on halfway – their best starting field position
England 0-0 Australia, 3 mins
14:34 , Luke BakerNathan Cleary kicks on the final tackle of the first set and a decent kick chase from Australia. Kai Pearce-Paul with a solid hit-up but Lewis forced to kick deep.
Was that going dead? Mark Nawaqanitawase wasn’t sure so makes the catch near his own line. Cagey start
KICK-OFF! England v Australia
14:32 , Luke BakerAfter 22 years of waiting, we have a rugby league Ashes Test once more!
Mikey Lewis kicks off and it’s a good opening defensive set of six for England, keeping the Kangaroos pinned in their own half
England v Australia
14:26 , Luke BakerAustralia are out on to the Wembley pitch very early and England trot down the tunnel a few minutes later.
To be honest, the crowd looks a little sparse. I’m not convinced the promised 60,000 spectators are there but we’ll see. Anthems upcoming
Ben Stokes offers words of wisdom
14:21 , Luke BakerSome cross-sport love. Before he heads down to Australia to captain England for their own Ashes, cricket star Ben Stokes spoke to his rugby league counterparts this week.
Stokes is desperate to see the Aussies turned over.
England team news
14:15 , Luke Baker
So, we now know the England starting line-up and interchanges for today, with Shaun Wane initially just naming his 19-man matchday squad on Thursday.
As expected, Mikey Lewis starts at scrum half, alongside captain George Williams, while surprise call-up Alex Walmsley is among the interchanges
Starting XIII: 1. Jack Welsby, 2. Dom Young, 3. Herbie Farnworth, 4. Jake Wardle, 5. Tom Johnstone, 6. George Williams, 7. Mikey Lewis, 8. Ethan Havard, 9. Daryl Clark, 10. Matty Lees, 11. John Bateman, 12. Kai Pearce-Paul, 13. Morgan Knowles
Interchanges: 14. Jez Litten, 15. Alex Walmsley, 16. Owen Trout, 17. Mike McMeeken
Alex Walmsley aims to make most of unlikely England recall and targets Ashes win
14:06 , Luke Baker
Alex Walmsley is determined to make the most of his unlikely England recall and play a part in an historic Ashes series win over Australia.
Having not played international rugby since 2021, the 35-year-old St Helens forward thought his chance had gone before a surprise chat with England head coach Shaun Wane led to his inclusion in the squad for the eagerly-awaited three-match series.
Walmsley made the cut for Wane’s final squad of 19 on Thursday.
“To be honest, I thought my international career was well and truly done and I think other people thought that as well, judging by the reaction to the squad announcement,” admitted Walmsley.
“But we’re here now and I want to make sure I make the absolute most of the next few weeks and enjoy every minute I can in camp, make sure I enjoy what is probably going to be my last international campaign.”
Last time they met: Australia win the World Cup
13:56 , Luke Baker
Remarkably, England haven’t faced Australia since the 2017 World Cup final, when the Kangaroos triumphed 6-0 in a tense affair in Brisbane.
Australia have won nine of the last 10 World Cups but England came close to beating them that day, with Boyd Cordner scoring the only try of the match but Kallum Watkins coming agonisingly close to doing so for England when he broke through the line and only an incredible ankle-tap tackle from Josh Dugan stopped him. What might have been…
England captain George Williams relishing chance to end long Ashes heartache
13:46 , Luke Baker
Shaun Wane was five years old the last time a British team deprived Australia of the rugby league Ashes, which illustrates the size of the task facing his England side at Wembley as they begin their daunting quest to make up for almost a lifetime of hurt.
The head coach has spoken all week of the danger of underestimating his England side but the statistics are all too evident: the last time they – then Great Britain – raised the famous trophy was with a 28-7 win in the decisive third match in Sydney in 1970, thanks to a match-winning try from Roger Millward.
“I dreamt of playing in games like this as a kid,” said captain George Williams, the Warrington half-back who has won two Super League Grand Finals, a World Club Challenge and a Challenge Cup title, but is clear where he would rank a history-making moment against the Australians.
Williams added: “I’ve been fortunate enough to win Grand Finals but this feels a little bit more special. If we could get this Ashes series win, it would 100 per cent top my Grand Final wins. It would be a great stepping stone and give us a lot of belief to go on and win the World Cup.”
Ashes captures the imagination with impressive ticket sales
13:36 , Luke Baker
Ticket sales for this three-match Ashes series have been really strong.
The third Test at the 19,700-capacity Headingley predictably sold out during the pre-sale period but the Rugby Football League (RFL) must have been delighted to see their gamble of going to the Hill Dickinson Stadium pay off so spectacularly, as Everton’s new 52,769-capacity ground sold out within hours of tickets going on general sale.
Wembley will kick things off today and ticket sales were a shade slower there but the London fanbase have helped that number climb steadily over the past few months. The biggest rugby league Ashes crowd in UK history is 57,034 and by Thursday, that number had been surpassed by tickets sold for the 2025 opener.
The record attendance for an England rugby league international, of 67,545 against New Zealand at Wembley in the 2013 World Cup semi-finals, will likely remain but clearing 60,000 fans in London today now seems a nigh-on certainty. More than 130,000 tickets sold for the series as a whole is a fantastic return.
Australian dominance of the Ashes
13:26 , Luke Baker
There’s no doubt that Australia have dominated this fixture – and rugby league as a whole – over the decades.
The Kangaroos racked up a record 13 straight Ashes series wins between 1973 and 2003 (albeit the majority by just a 2-1 scoreline), meaning 1970 remains the most recent Great Britain triumph and 1959 was the last British series victory on home soil.
GB’s most recent victory in an individual match against the Kangaroos was during the 2006 Tri-Nations in Sydney, while the England brand have lost 13 straight matches to the men in green and gold since an Andy Farrell and Jason Robinson-inspired win in the opening fixture of the 1995 World Cup.
All this is to say it would be a huge success if Shaun Wane’s current England side could win just one of the upcoming three Tests.
Shaun Wane promises ‘smash-up’ in much-delayed Ashes
13:15 , Luke Baker
England head coach Shaun Wane has been waiting five years for a “smash-up” with Australia and is relishing the role of underdogs ahead of the first of three long-awaited Ashes Tests.
Wane took the England role in February 2020 but a mooted series later that year was abandoned due to the Covid pandemic and the 61-year-old has been counting down the days to get another crack at the Kangaroos.
Speaking at the series launch event in London on Tuesday, Wane said: “I took the job in 2020 and this was the first thing I saw, the Ashes series. Obviously that got cancelled and I was absolutely wounded. The chance to play against the best team in the world in an iconic stadium like this, it’s got the makings of a fantastic day.
“It would be good to stick it to the doubters. I’m not on social media but I know a lot of stuff has been said.
“They’re going to be physical with us and we’ll be physical with them. It’s going to be a smash-up and the best team will come out in the end. I hope it’s us.
England face Ashes mountain but international rugby league set for long-awaited shot in the arm
13:06 , Luke Baker
With 2025 winding down, England head into an Ashes series against Australia as big underdogs, hopeful of making history but understanding the monumental challenge that lies ahead.
A sentence that could easily be talking about the men’s cricket team soon to be flying Down Under but in fact applies to the men’s rugby league side facing an even bigger task after 22 years of waiting.
Not since 2003, the same year that Jonny Wilkinson was breaking Wallaby hearts with his dramatic drop goal in rugby’s other code, has rugby league seen the Ashes contested. This three-match series, starting at Wembley today, is long overdue.
Read a full preview of this afternoon’s clash at Wembley:
Australia team news
12:55 , Luke Baker
Reece Walsh has won the battle to be named as Australia’s starting full-back after a stellar display for Brisbane Broncos in the NRL Grand Final against Melbourne Storm earlier this month.
Walsh, who will replace Dylan Edwards, is one of three starting debutants along with Gehamat Shibasaki, who scored two tries for the Broncos in the final, and Sydney Roosters winger Mark Nawaqanitawase – the former rugby union star who is expected to return to the 15-man code ahead of a home World Cup in 2027. Keaon Koloamatangi will start on the bench.
Australia team: 1. Reece Walsh, 2. Mark Nawaqanitawase, 3. Kotoni Staggs, 4. Gehamat Shibasaki, 5. Josh Addo-Carr, 6. Cameron Munster, 7. Nathan Cleary, 8. Patrick Carrigan, 9. Harry Grant, 10. Tino Fa’asuamaleaui, 11. Angus Crichton, 12. Hudson Young, 13. Isaah Yeo (captain)
Interchanges:14. Tom Dearden, 15. Lindsay Collins, 16. Reuben Cotter, 17. Keaon Koloamatangi
England team news
12:49 , Luke Baker
Shaun Wane named England’s 19-man matchday squad on Thursday – although we will have to wait for their starting 13 and interchanges – and Hull KR scrum half Mikey Lewis was included, suggesting he will start alongside captain George Williams in the half-back roles, with main competitor, Wigan’s Harry Smith, left out of the party.
Another Hull KR star, Jez Litten, has also made the matchday squad, putting him in line to make his first England appearance since 2023, although club-mate Joe Burgess, who was in the wider squad for the first time in 10 years, misses out.
AJ Brimson, who switched international allegiance from Australia earlier this year, and Leigh forward Owen Trout are in line for international debuts, while St Helens forward Alex Walmsley could make his first England appearance since 2021.
England squad: John Bateman, AJ Brimson, Daryl Clark, Herbie Farnworth, Ethan Havard, Tom Johnstone, Morgan Knowles, Matty Lees, Mikey Lewis, Jez Litten, Mike McMeeken, Mikolaj Oledzki, Kai Pearce-Paul, Owen Trout, Alex Walmsley, Jake Wardle, Jack Welsby, George Williams, Dom Young
How to watch England v Australia
12:43 , Luke Baker
The first Ashes Test will take place at Wembley Stadium, London, and kicks off at 2:30pm BST on Saturday 25 October.
In the UK, the match will be shown live on BBC One, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website, with coverage getting underway at 2pm. Coverage will be presented by the imperious Mark Chapman.
Everything you need to know about England v Australia
12:43 , Luke Baker
England and Australia will finally renew their rivalry at Wembley Stadium this afternoon with a first Ashes Test in rugby league for 22 years.
Not since 2003, when Australia downed Great Britain 3-0, has the rugby league Ashes been contested but now England have picked up the GB mantle and a three-Test series will finally take place between the old rivals at Wembley, Everton’s brand-new Hill Dickinson Stadium and Headingley.
Here’s everything you need to know:
England v Australia – Ashes first Test
12:41 , Luke Baker
Welcome to The Independent’s coverage of England v Australia in the first rugby league Ashes Test for 22 years.
It’s a special day for the sport at Wembley Stadium so stick with us for full live coverage