If you’ve searched for Ireland’s November internationals in the past few months, you’ve hit conflicting answers: some pages say two matches, others stretch to four. The official IRFU announcement, published in February (Irish Rugby, official governing body), confirms four — starting with a rare Stateside clash against New Zealand at Soldier Field, Chicago, on 1 November 2025.

4 related posts

Confirmed matches: 4 ·
Series opener: 1 November 2025 vs New Zealand, Chicago ·
Home opener: 8 November vs Japan, Aviva Stadium ·
Chicago kick-off: 8:10 PM Irish time ·
Broadcast (Ireland): TNT Sports + Virgin Media ·
Tickets on sale: 10 July 2025

Quick snapshot

1Confirmed facts
2What’s unclear
  • UK free-to-air channel schedule for each match — not part of the IRFU’s announcement (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker)
  • Squad selection, including James Lowe: no squad was named alongside the fixtures (Irish Rugby, official governing body)
  • Kick-off rounding: BBC lists the Chicago game at 20:00, while the IRFU’s official time is 8:10 PM Irish time (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker)
3Timeline signal
  • All four fixtures confirmed: New Zealand (1 Nov, Chicago), Japan (8 Nov), Australia (15 Nov), South Africa (22 Nov, Aviva Stadium) (Irish Rugby, official governing body)
4What’s next
  • Tickets: on sale since 10 July 2025 (Irish Rugby, ticket notice)
  • Broadcast: every series match live on TNT Sports; Ireland’s matches free on Virgin Media (Rugby World, series guide)
  • Squad announcement: the IRFU’s next major confirmation for selection watchers (Irish Rugby, official governing body)

Eight facts, one pattern: the series is anchored in Dublin but starts across the Atlantic — and whether you chase the Chicago opener or wait for the Aviva Stadium fixtures is the first planning call to make.

The table below lays out every confirmed date, venue, and kick-off time in one view.

Detail Value
Number of matches 4 — New Zealand, Japan, Australia, South Africa
Series opener Ireland vs New Zealand, 1 November 2025, Soldier Field, Chicago
Opener kick-off 8:10 PM Irish time (3:10 PM local time)
Second match Ireland vs Japan, 8 November 2025, Aviva Stadium, Dublin — 12:40 PM
Third match Ireland vs Australia, 15 November 2025, Aviva Stadium, Dublin — 8:10 PM
Series closer Ireland vs South Africa, 22 November 2025, Aviva Stadium, Dublin — 5:40 PM
Tickets on sale 10 July 2025, per the IRFU’s ticket notice
Broadcast (Ireland) TNT Sports (all matches), Virgin Media (Ireland matches, free)

Every date, venue, and kick-off time above comes from the IRFU’s official fixtures announcement (Irish Rugby, official governing body); ticket details come from the IRFU’s ticket notice (Irish Rugby, ticket notice) and the broadcast picture from Rugby World’s series guide (Rugby World, series guide).

What rugby matches will Ireland play in November 2025?

The Ireland November internationals 2025 schedule runs across four consecutive Saturdays, and the official confirmation landed on 18 February 2025 when the IRFU published the full Autumn Nations Series programme (Irish Rugby, official governing body). Early round-ups that carried a two-match version were incomplete.

The upshot

The two-match version of Ireland’s November series is obsolete. The IRFU’s official schedule runs to four matches, and South Africa on 22 November is the difference between a brief cameo and a full autumn campaign.

Ireland vs New Zealand – 1 November 2025 in Chicago

  • Fixture: Ireland vs New Zealand, 1 November 2025 · Venue: Soldier Field, Chicago · Kick-off: 8:10 PM Irish time / 3:10 PM local time (Irish Rugby, official governing body)

The All Blacks fixture opens the series at Soldier Field. For Irish viewers, the 8:10 PM start keeps a familiar Saturday-evening slot even though the game is across the Atlantic; in Chicago it is a mid-afternoon kick-off. Rugby World’s guide lists the same match at 8.00pm GMT / 3.00pm CT — a rounding of the official IRFU time (Rugby World, series guide).

Ireland vs Japan – 8 November 2025 in Dublin

  • Fixture: Ireland vs Japan, 8 November 2025 · Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin · Kick-off: 12:40 PM, the earliest start of the series (Irish Rugby, official governing body)

Japan provide the first Dublin test a week after Chicago. The lunchtime slot is the outlier among the home fixtures — early enough that the evening is free.

Ireland vs Australia – 15 November 2025 in Dublin

  • Fixture: Ireland vs Australia, 15 November 2025 · Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin · Kick-off: 8:10 PM (Irish Rugby, official governing body)

Australia bring the latest Dublin start of the month. If you’re picking one home match for the full evening feel, this is the structural twin of the Chicago opener.

Ireland vs South Africa – 22 November 2025 in Dublin

  • Fixture: Ireland vs South Africa, 22 November 2025 · Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin · Kick-off: 5:40 PM, the series closer (Irish Rugby, official governing body)

The series ends with South Africa on 22 November. The 5:40 PM start splits the difference between lunchtime and evening — early enough for post-match plans, late enough to feel like a proper night fixture.

The pattern: three of the four matches are at Aviva Stadium, and the Chicago opener is the outlier in every way — different continent, different time zone, earlier in the month. For planning, that means the New Zealand game is the one that needs flights or an especially arranged evening; the Dublin three simply need a ground or a sofa.

Bottom line: Ireland play four matches in November 2025 — New Zealand in Chicago on the 1st, then Japan, Australia, and South Africa at Aviva Stadium on the 8th, 15th, and 22nd. If you’re booking around the series, the Chicago trip is the one that needs the earliest decision.

Where can I watch the Autumn Internationals on TV?

For viewers in Ireland, the broadcast answer is already settled: Rugby World’s 2025 series guide lists TNT Sports as the home of every Autumn Nations Series match, with Ireland’s own fixtures also carried free on Virgin Media (Rugby World, series guide).

Official broadcasters for Ireland’s 2025 Autumn Internationals

  • All series matches: live on TNT Sports in Ireland; Ireland’s matches also free on Virgin Media (Rugby World, series guide)
  • Fixture reference: BBC Sport lists all four Ireland matches with UK kick-off times (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker)

That combination — a subscription home for the full series and a free-to-air home for Ireland — is the structure most Irish fans expect from November rugby, and it applies to the Chicago game as much as the three Dublin fixtures.

UK and Ireland TV channels typically showing autumn rugby

  • Ireland: TNT Sports and Virgin Media, confirmed for 2025 (Rugby World, series guide)
  • UK: BBC Sport’s fixture page tracks all four matches and their times (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker)
  • UK channel schedule: not part of the official IRFU announcements (Irish Rugby, official governing body)

UK viewers have a reliable reference in BBC Sport’s page, which lists all four November matches and flags that times are subject to change (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker). What the page does not do yet is name the UK channel for each game — that detail had not appeared in the official announcements covered here.

The catch

Free is a location-specific promise. Virgin Media’s free coverage applies in Ireland; UK viewers should track BBC Sport’s listings rather than assume the same matches will be free on UK channels.

Bottom line: The trade-off: TNT Sports gives you every match of the series in one place, while Virgin Media gives you Ireland’s matches for free. For a neutral fan, TNT is the complete package; for an Ireland fan, free is the whole point.

How to watch autumn rugby internationals for free?

The honest answer: free coverage of the 2025 series exists, but it is geographically specific. In Ireland, Virgin Media carries Ireland’s matches free; the confirmed catch-all is TNT Sports (Rugby World, series guide).

  1. Check your market. In Ireland, Ireland’s matches are free on Virgin Media, and every series match is live on TNT Sports (Rugby World, series guide).
  2. Note the official kick-off times. The IRFU sets 8:10 PM Irish time for Chicago and 12:40 PM, 8:10 PM, and 5:40 PM for the three Dublin matches (Irish Rugby, official governing body).
  3. Keep BBC Sport’s fixtures page open. It lists all four matches with UK times and warns that times are subject to change (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker).
  4. Sort tickets early if you’re going to the ground. Tickets went on sale on 10 July 2025 (Irish Rugby, ticket notice).

The discipline is simple: verify the broadcaster for the specific match you want, because a round-up from a previous season will not tell you what changed. And if a site promises free streams of every match, the safe reading is that the legal free route is market-specific — Ireland has one, other markets may not.

The trade-off: free coverage in Ireland is real, but it covers Ireland’s matches, not the whole series. Every match is on TNT Sports, so fans of the wider tournament still need the pay option.

What time is KO for Ireland v South Africa?

The direct answer: 5:40 PM Irish time on Saturday 22 November at Aviva Stadium (Irish Rugby, official governing body). The fuller answer is that each of the four matches has a different start time, and third-party listings don’t always match the official ones.

Ireland’s kick-off times for the 2025 Autumn Series

  • 1 November — New Zealand (Chicago): 8:10 PM Irish time / 3:10 PM local
  • 8 November — Japan (Dublin): 12:40 PM
  • 15 November — Australia (Dublin): 8:10 PM
  • 22 November — South Africa (Dublin): 5:40 PM

All four times come from the IRFU’s February fixture announcement (Irish Rugby, official governing body). BBC Sport’s fixtures page agrees on the Dublin games — 12:40, 20:10, and 17:40 — and lists the Chicago opener at 20:00 (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker).

Why some listings show different times

  • IRFU official: 8:10 PM Irish time for Chicago (Irish Rugby, official governing body)
  • BBC Sport: 20:00 UK for the same match (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker)
  • Rugby World: 8:00 PM GMT / 4:00 PM ET / 3:00 PM CT (Rugby World, series guide)

These are the same kick-off rounded differently. The IRFU’s 8:10 PM Irish time is 3:10 PM in Chicago; BBC and Rugby World round that to 20:00 and 8:00 PM respectively. The gap is presentation, not a different schedule.

Bottom line: The four kick-off times are set: 8:10 PM (Chicago), 12:40 PM (Japan), 8:10 PM (Australia), 5:40 PM (South Africa). For anyone setting alarms, book the official IRFU times rather than the rounded listings.

Why is James Lowe not playing?

The honest answer: nobody official has said he isn’t. The IRFU’s February announcement covered fixtures, venues, and kick-off times — it did not name a squad (Irish Rugby, official governing body).

What’s known about James Lowe’s selection status

  • No squad was announced alongside the 2025 fixtures (Irish Rugby, official governing body)
  • Search interest in the question appears to trace back to Lowe’s absence from matchday squads in earlier international windows
  • Any claim that Lowe is ruled out of the November series is speculation until the IRFU publishes selection (Irish Rugby, official governing body)

The second point deserves care: there is no IRFU statement about Lowe’s 2025 status in the public record, and no squad list exists to confirm or deny his place. The question keeps resurfacing because his name has been missing from Ireland selections in past fixtures, and fans are checking whether that pattern continues.

What to watch

Selection is the only reliable source on James Lowe. Until the IRFU names a squad, a “ruled out” headline is someone else’s guess wearing confident phrasing.

The pattern: every James Lowe rumour this cycle collides with the same fact — there is no squad yet. For fans, the practical move is to ignore lineup speculation and wait for the IRFU’s announcement.

Ireland’s November 2025 internationals timeline

Four Saturdays, two venues, one pattern worth noting: the only match outside Dublin comes first, and the three home kick-off times move from lunchtime to early evening as the month goes on.

Date Fixture Venue Kick-off (Irish time)
Ireland vs New Zealand Soldier Field, Chicago 8:10 PM
Ireland vs Japan Aviva Stadium, Dublin 12:40 PM
Ireland vs Australia Aviva Stadium, Dublin 8:10 PM
Ireland vs South Africa Aviva Stadium, Dublin 5:40 PM

All fixtures, venues, and kick-off times come from the IRFU’s official announcement (Irish Rugby, official governing body); BBC Sport’s fixtures page mirrors the same four dates with UK times (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker). Once the series begins, live results across all four weekends are tracked on the International Rugby Results Today page, and if you’re already planning ahead, the 2026 Six Nations home opener against Italy has its date, time, TV channel, and ticket details mapped out in the Ireland v Italy 2026: Date, Time, TV Channel & Tickets guide.

The implication: the series is front-loaded with its most unusual fixture. Once the Chicago game is done, the remaining three Saturdays follow a predictable Dublin rhythm — which is exactly why the opener is the match to plan around.

What’s confirmed and what’s still unclear about Ireland’s 2025 series

Confidence is uneven across the planning picture. The fixtures, kick-off times, and ticket date are locked; the broadcast picture is confirmed for Ireland but thinner for the UK; player selection is unaddressed.

Confirmed facts

  • Four matches: New Zealand (1 Nov, Chicago), Japan (8 Nov), Australia (15 Nov), South Africa (22 Nov, Aviva Stadium) (Irish Rugby, official governing body)
  • All four kick-off times set by the IRFU (Irish Rugby, official governing body)
  • Tickets on sale from 10 July 2025 (Irish Rugby, ticket notice)
  • Ireland broadcast: TNT Sports (all matches), Virgin Media (Ireland matches, free) (Rugby World, series guide)

What’s unclear

  • UK free-to-air channel schedule for each match (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker)
  • James Lowe’s selection status — no squad named (Irish Rugby, official governing body)
  • Exact squad announcement date (Irish Rugby, official governing body)
  • Per-match ticket pricing after the 10 July on-sale

Why this matters: the split tells you what to trust. Dates and kick-offs are settled facts; the broadcast picture is settled in Ireland but not the UK; player claims are guesses until the IRFU names a squad. Plan around the first two, and treat the third as noise.

What the sources say

Three statements carry the planning picture — two from the governing body, one from the sport’s press.

“Ireland will begin their 2025 Autumn Nations Series against New Zealand at Soldier Field in Chicago on Saturday, 1 November, before returning to Aviva Stadium to face Japan, Australia, and South Africa.”

Irish Rugby — official fixture announcement

“Every Autumn Nations Series match will be live on TNT Sports in Ireland, while Ireland matches will also be free on Virgin Media.”

Rugby World — Autumn Nations Series 2025 guide

“Tickets for Ireland’s 2025 Autumn Nations Series went on sale on 10 July 2025.”

Irish Rugby — ticket on-sale notice

The pattern: official sources give you the skeleton — dates, venues, times, ticket dates — and specialist press fills in the broadcast detail. When other pages conflict, that hierarchy settles it.

Why it matters: For Irish fans, the 2025 November series is a month with two very different planning problems: getting to Chicago for the opener or settling for an evening kick-off on a screen, then juggling three Dublin Saturdays that run from lunchtime to early evening. The broadcast picture is already half-settled — TNT Sports and Virgin Media carry the series in Ireland — but the squad, the UK free-to-air details, and the James Lowe question all wait on the IRFU’s next announcement. For anyone booking flights, tickets, or a subscription, the choice is clear: lock in the four confirmed dates now, or pay last-minute rates for a series that was never a two-match event.

Related reading: Ireland v Italy 2026: Date, Time, TV Channel & Tickets

Additional sources

rugbybroadcast.com, espn.com, florugby.com, ticketmaster.ie, rugbyworld.com, fanzo.com, irishtimes.com, sportinglife.com, rathdrumrfc.ie

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Frequently asked questions

Are there more than two matches in Ireland’s 2025 November internationals?

Yes. The official schedule has four matches: New Zealand in Chicago on 1 November, then Japan (8 November), Australia (15 November), and South Africa (22 November) at Aviva Stadium. Early two-match versions of the series are incomplete (Irish Rugby, official governing body).

How can I buy tickets for the Ireland vs New Zealand match in Chicago?

Tickets for the entire 2025 Autumn Nations Series went on sale on 10 July 2025, according to the IRFU’s ticket notice (Irish Rugby, ticket notice). The IRFU announcement is the safest starting point for official allocations; third-party resale sites carry the usual risks and markups.

Will the Ireland matches be available on free TV in the UK?

In Ireland, Ireland’s matches are free on Virgin Media, and all series matches are live on TNT Sports (Rugby World, series guide). A UK free-to-air equivalent for each match had not been confirmed in the announcements covered here; BBC Sport’s fixtures page is the best tracking point for UK viewers (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker).

What is the Autumn Nations Series?

The Autumn Nations Series is the annual block of November internationals in which southern-hemisphere teams tour Europe. Ireland’s 2025 edition includes New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, and Japan across consecutive Saturdays (Rugby World, series guide).

Do Ireland play South Africa in November 2025?

Yes — Saturday 22 November 2025 at Aviva Stadium, with a 5:40 PM Irish-time kick-off (Irish Rugby, official governing body). It is the final match of the series.

When will broadcasters be confirmed?

For Ireland, they already are: Rugby World confirms TNT Sports carries every series match, with Ireland’s games free on Virgin Media (Rugby World, series guide). A complete UK channel-by-channel schedule was not part of the official announcements covered here; BBC Sport’s fixtures page remains the reference for dates and times (BBC Sport, fixtures tracker).

Has Ireland named its squad for the November 2025 internationals?

No. The IRFU’s February fixture announcement covered match scheduling only and did not include a squad (Irish Rugby, official governing body). Player questions — including James Lowe’s status — remain officially unanswered until the IRFU publishes selection.