British Lions national rugby union team
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| Unions |
Rugby Football Union Irish Rugby Football Union Scottish Rugby Union Welsh Rugby Union |
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| Nickname(s) | The Lions | ||
| Coach(es) |
 Warren Gatland (2017 tour) |
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| Captain(s) |
 Peter O'Mahony (2017 tour) |
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| Most caps |
Willie John McBride (17) |
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| Top scorer |  Jonny Wilkinson (67) |
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| Most tries |
Tony O'Reilly (6) |
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| First match | |||
 Otago 3 – 8 Shaw & Shrewsbury Team  (28 April 1888) |
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| Largest win | |||
 Western Australia 10–116 British and Irish Lions(8 June 2001) |
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| Largest test win | |||
 Argentina 0–46 British Lions(7 Aug 1927) |
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| Largest defeat | |||
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New Zealand 38–6 British Lions (16 July 1983) |
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| Largest test defeat | |||
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New Zealand 38–6 British Lions (16 July 1983) |
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 Current season
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Sam Warburton (2017 tour)
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for any of the Home Nations – the national sides of the British Isles; England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The Lions are a Test side, and generally select international players, but they can pick uncapped players available to any one of the four unions. The team currently tours every four years, with these rotating among Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. The 2009 Test series was lost 1–2 to South Africa, while the 2013 Test series was won 2–1 over Australia. The most recent series, the 2017 Test series against the world champions, New Zealand, was drawn 1–1–1.
From 1888 onwards combined rugby sides from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland toured the Southern Hemisphere. The first tour was a commercial venture, and was undertaken without official backing. The six subsequent visits enjoyed a growing degree of support from the authorities, before the 1910 South Africa tour, which was the first tour representative of the four Home Unions. In 1949 the four Home Unions formally created a Tours Committee and for the first time, every player of the 1950 Lions squad had played internationally before the tour. The 1950s tours saw high win rates in provincial games, but the Test series were typically lost or drawn. The winning series in 1971 (New Zealand) and 1974 (South Africa) changed this pattern. The last tour of the amateur age took place in 1993.
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