Catch the action from Johannesburg wherever you are in the world
Sigma Lions v British & Irish Lions live stream: How to watch the tour opener
The British & Irish Lions 2021 open their tour of South Africa by playing the Johannesburg-based Sigma Lions at Emirates Airline Park this evening (kick-off 5pm UK & Ireland time).
Wherever you are in the world, you won’t want to miss the action so below we explain how to find a reliable live stream and here are how the two teams line up.
Sigma Lions: EW Viljoen; Jamba Ulengo, Manuel Rass, Burger Odendaal, Rabz Maxwane; Jordan Hendrikse, Dillon Smit; Nathan McBeth, PJ Botha, Ruan Dreyer, Ruben Schoeman, Reinhard Nothnagel, Sbusiso Sangweni, Vincent Tshituka, Francke Horn (captain).
Replacements: Jaco Visagie, Sti Sithole, Carlu Sadie, Ruhan Straeuli, Emmanuel Tshituka, Morne van den Berg, Fred Zeilinga, Dan Kriel.
British & Irish Lions: Stuart Hogg (captain); Louis Rees-Zammit, Chris Harris, Owen Farrell, Josh Adams; Finn Russell, Ali Price; Wyn Jones, Jamie George, Kyle Sinckler, Maro Itoje, Jonny Hill, Courtney Lawes, Hamish Watson, Taulupe Faletau.
Replacements: Luke Cowan-Dickie, Mako Vunipola, Zander Fagerson, Iain Henderson, Sam Simmonds, Gareth Davies, Bundee Aki, Elliot Daly.
How to watch Sigma Lions v British & Irish Lions from outside your country
If you’re abroad, but still want to watch your local rugby coverage, like the Sigma Lions v British & Irish Lions, you can do so by using a VPN – Virtual Private Network.
VPNs allow you to get around any geo-blocking by changing your IP address so you appear in a different location and can watch the same legal Lions live stream you would at home.
Our friends at TechRadar have tested hundreds of VPN and recommend ExpressVPN, which is easy to use, has strong security features and allows you to watch on several devices at once, including smart TVs and phones, iPads, tablets, PCs and Macs.
Plus, ExpressVPN comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee. You can try it out for a month for free or sign up for an annual plan and get three months free.
Sigma Lions v British & Irish Lions live stream: How to watch from the UK & Ireland
All the Lions’ matches in South Africa, including the three Tests against the Springboks, will be televised live on Sky Sports. Coverage of this opening fixture starts at 4pm on Sky Sports Action and Main Event.
It's time to get excited. ??
Do not miss the British and Irish Lions' tour of South Africa this summer, exclusively live on Sky Sports! ?? pic.twitter.com/7xCAbhWxic
— Sky Sports Rugby Union (@SkySportsRugby) June 23, 2021
Sky TV and Sports packages are available from £45 a month.
Highlights of this match will also be available on free-to-air TV – All 4 and S4C (10.30pm).
If you’re from the UK but are overseas when the Lions tour takes place, you can get your normal live stream but you’ll need a VPN – see the information above.
Sigma Lions v British & Irish Lions live stream: How to watch from the USA
If you live in the States, NBC has the rights to 2021 Lions matches, with games streamed on Peacock Premium, which is available for $4.99 a month.
This match will kick off at midday EST and 9am on the West Coast.
Proud that @NBCSports is your ?? broadcaster for this years @lionsofficial Tour against @Springboks ‼️ It’s the pinnacle of my career and can’t wait to break it all down for the ?? audience. All games are LIVE on @peacockTV #RugbyOnNBC pic.twitter.com/ICqbAkdv1F
— Alex Corbisiero (@AlexCorbs) June 30, 2021
Sigma Lions v British & Irish Lions live stream: How to watch from Australia
For those in Australia, streaming service Stan Sport has the exclusive rights to show British & Irish Lions matches in 2021. The Sigma Lions fixture kicks off at 2am on Sunday in Australia.
It costs $10 a month to add Stan Sport to your general Stan plan – and there is also a seven-day free trial available so you could test it out.
Sigma Lions v British & Irish Lions live stream: How to watch from New Zealand
The opening Lions match will kick off at 4am on Sunday New Zealand time and will be live on SKY Sport NZ 1.
It costs $31.99 a month to add Sky Sport to your Sky Starter pack ($25.99).
Sigma Lions v British & Irish Lions live stream: How to watch from South Africa
This match (kick-off 6pm SA time) will be live on SuperSport’s CSN, Grandstand and Rugby channels.
There are various DStv packages available that give access to SuperSport, ranging from Access, which has the Blitz and Variety 4 channels, to Premium, which includes all 18 sports channels.
Sigma Lions v British & Irish Lions live stream: How to watch from Japan
JSPORTS will be showing 2021 Lions matches in Japan and the opening fixture kicks off at 1am on Sunday Japan time.
Sigma Lions v British & Irish Lions live stream: How to watch from Asia
Outside of Japan, Premier Sports Asia has the rights to broadcast British & Irish Lions matches in Asia and will show matches in 22 territories – Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Laos, Macau, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.
A monthly subscription to Premier Sports Asia is $25.99 or a rolling annual contract is $129.99.
We recommend VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:
- Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service)
- Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad
We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
Can’t get to the shops? You can download the digital edition of Rugby World straight to your tablet or subscribe to the print edition to get the magazine delivered to your door.
Follow Rugby World on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.