Ireland head to Rome with the championship on the line in the first of Saturday’s three games
Watch Italy v Ireland the 2025 Six Nations Super Saturday kicks off at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, with all the details here on live streams and TV broadcasts globally.
Ireland were on course for a Grand Slam until France put in a performance for the ages at the Aviva Stadium last Saturday. They head to Rome looking to keep their slim hopes of winning the championship alive. For Italy the target is rather lower, as they could still end the day with the dreaded Wooden Spoon.
Italy v Ireland kicks off at 2.15pm GMT, and is available to watch for free in UK, Ireland, Italy and France. This guide is packed with the information you need to watch Italy v Ireland online, on TV, and from anywhere in the world.
Key information
– Italy v Ireland date: Saturday 15 March 2025
– Italy v Ireland kick-off time: 3.15pm local (CET) / 2.15pm GMT / 10.15am ET / 4.15pm SAST / 1.15am AEDT (Sunday)
– Italy v Ireland venue: Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy
– Italy v Ireland on TV: ITV1, RTÉ2, TV8, France 2
– Italy v Ireland streams: ITVX (free), RTÉ Player (free), FranceTV (free)
– Watch from anywhere: Try NordVPN 100% risk-free
How to watch Italy v Ireland for free
Free live streams are available for Italy v Ireland in all of the participating nations.
Italy v Ireland is on ITV1 and ITVX across the UK, while viewers in Ireland can follow the action on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. In France, you need France 2 and FranceTV, and – as has been the case for all of Italy’s matches this tournament – Italian rugby fans can watch on TV8.
Coverage from all these providers is geo-restricted, but if you’re going to be overseas on Saturday you can still watch your usual service by using a VPN. Find out how below.
How to watch Italy v Ireland from abroad
Even if you’re travelling overseas this weekend, you don’t need to worry about geo-restrictions keeping you away from your usual streaming service.
A VPN (that stands for Virtual Private Network) is a handy piece of software that can alter your device’s IP address. The result? Making your device appear to be in a different country. You can use a VPN to unblock geo-restricted feeds and enjoy your usual coverage from anywhere in the world.
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How to watch Italy v Ireland in the UK
UK fans can kick off their Super Saturday by watching Italy v Ireland live streams for free on ITV1 and ITVX.
ITV’s coverage starts at 1.30pm GMT ahead of the 2.15pm kick-off. ITVX is free to use with a simple registration, but remember that you need a valid UK TV Licence to stream live TV in the UK.
Six Nations TV coverage is shared between ITV and BBC in the UK. Wales v England (kick-off 4.45pm GMT) is on BBC One and BBC iPlayer, while the big France v Scotland (kick-off 8.00pm GMT) is on ITV1 and ITVX.
How to watch Italy v Ireland in Ireland
Free-to-air broadcaster RTÉ has the rights to Ireland’s final match of the 2025 championship. Traditional terrestrial viewers can watch the game on RTÉ2, while streamers can watch Italy v Ireland live streams on RTÉ Player using the app or a web browser – no registration necessary.
Coverage starts at 1.15pm GMT ahead of the 2.15pm kick-off.
How to watch Italy v Ireland in Italy
Subscription service Sky Sports Italia is the main Six Nations broadcaster in Italy but you can also watch the Azzurri’s games – including Italy v Ireland – for free via TV8. TV8 comes on free-to-air terrestrial television but you can also watch online through a simple browser player. There’s no need to register or sign in.
How to watch Italy v Ireland in France
Rugby fans in France don’t need to change channel all day, as all three Super Saturday matches are available for free via public broadcaster France Télévisions. The match is live on terrestrial channel France 2, while you can watch Italy v Ireland live streams on the FranceTV streaming platform.
Italy v Ireland: Other global streams
USA: NBC-owned streaming platform Peacock has the rights to Six Nations games in the States, including Italy v Ireland. A subscription costs $7.99 per month.
Australia: Italy v Ireland will be on Stan Sport in Australia. It costs $15 per month to add the sports package to your base Stan plan.
New Zealand: In New Zealand, Sky Sport is your destination for Italy v Ireland. You can watch via satellite or stream through Sky Sport Now for $49.99 a month.
South Africa: SuperSport is available on satellite TV or streaming, and is showing every game of the 2025 Six Nations.
Watch from anywhere: You can use NordVPN to unblock your usual streams while abroad.
- For a full list of global broadcasters, check out our full guide on how to watch Six Nations 2025.
Italy v Ireland: Preview
The first of today’s three matches sees two teams looking to salvage a championship that looked a lot more promising a few weeks ago – albeit for very different reasons.
Until last Saturday, Ireland were on course for a Grand Slam and an unprecedented third Six Nations championship in a row. Then France came to Dublin and put in the sort of performance the rugby world will be talking about for years, beating the hosts 27-42 with a display of forward power and scintillating back play. It was one of those once-in-a-blue-moon occasions when Ireland struggle to match the opposition at their Aviva Stadium stronghold.
Italy also suffered against France, as Antoine Dupont’s team bounced back from their shock defeat to England to run rampant in a 24-73 thrashing. The Azzurri’s sole victory so far came against Wales, and – unless they can beat today’s visitors for the first time since 2013 – it’ll feel like a step back from last year’s record haul of two wins and a draw. There’s also a chance Wales could overtake them in the race to avoid the Wooden Spoon, even if Matt Sherratt’s men fail to beat England in Cardiff later this afternoon.
Of course, the Italians won’t be the only ones keeping a close eye on the championship table after the final whistle. Ireland are still in the running for the title, though they’ll need both England and France to slip up – even if they secure a bonus point victory in Rome. If they can pull it back from here the St Patrick’s Day weekend celebrations will be truly epic.
Championship or not, Ireland’s players will be seeing this as their last international audition for this summer’s British & Irish Lions tour to Australia. When Andy Farrell left for his Lions coaching sabbatical, many predicted the men in green to form the bulk of the squad, but a few of those spots may no longer be so cut-and-dried. A comfortable victory with plenty of tries certainly wouldn’t do the hopes of Ireland’s prospective Lions any harm.
And the question remains, do Italy have what it takes to stop them? Even when they’re not firing on all cylinders, Ireland tend to find a way to win against weaker opposition, as they proved against Wales at the Principality Stadium. The Azzurri lack Ireland’s impressive strength in depth, and head coach Gonzalo Quesada’s frequent tinkering – he’s made seven changes to the XV that started at Twickenham last week – suggests he’s still looking for the right combinations. In many ways, a bonus point defeat would feel like a victory – especially if it dooms Wales to a second consecutive Wooden Spoon.
Italy v Ireland teams and officials
Among seven changes to the starting line-up, the biggest headline in the Italy ranks is captain Michele Lamaro dropping to the bench. Manuel Zuliani takes his spot at openside flanker, while Tomasso Allan and Martin Page-Relo return to the back line.
Ireland have also switched things up, most notably in the backs where Jack Crowley takes over from Sam Prendergast at fly-half. Garry Ringrose returns at centre, while Mack Hansen and James Lowe (who pulled out in the warm-up just before the France match) are back on the wings.
Italy
15. Tomasso Allan
14. Ange Capuozzo
13. Juan Ignacio Brex (captain)
12. Tommaso Menoncello
11. Monty Ioane
10. Paolo Garbisi
9. Martin Page-Relo
1. Danilo Fischetti
2. Gianmarco Lucchesi
3. Simone Ferrari
4. Dino Lamb
5. Federico Ruzza
6. Sebastian Negri
7. Manuel Zuliani
8. Lorenzo Cannone
Replacements:
16. Giacomo Nicotera
17. Mirco Spagnolo
18. Giosuè Zilocchi
19. Niccolò Cannone
20. Michele Lamaro
21. Ross Vintcent
22. Stephen Varney
23. Leonardo Marin
Ireland
15. Hugo Keenan
14. Mack Hansen
13. Garry Ringrose
12. Robbie Henshaw
11. James Lowe
10. Jack Crowley
9. Jamison Gibson-Park
1. Andrew Porter
2. Dan Sheehan
3. Finlay Bealham
4. James Ryan
5. Tadhg Beirne
6. Jack Conan
7. Josh van der Flier
8. Caelan Doris (captain)
Replacements:
16. Gus McCarthy
17. Jack Boyle
18. Tadhg Furlong
19. Joe McCarthy
20. Peter O’Mahony
21. Conor Murray
22. Sam Prendergast
23. Bundee Aki
England’s Luke Pearce is the referee for Italy v France, and he’ll be assisted by Angus Gardner of Australia and Morné Ferreira of South Africa. Andrew Jackson of England is the TMO.
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