IRELAND WILL PLAY England and Italy in World Cup warm-up fixtures in August 2023 at the Aviva Stadium.

The schedule was confirmed today with the England game on Saturday 19 August and the Italy match preceding that on Saturday 5 August. Kick-off times are still to be confirmed.

It will be the second time that England will travel to Dublin next year as they play Ireland in the final round of the Six Nations on Saturday 18 March at the Aviva Stadium at 5pm.

“It’s a great chance to benchmark ourselves against the current number one team in the world,” said England coach Eddie Jones, speaking about the World Cup warm-up fixture.

“We are looking forward to taking them on in front of a lively Irish crowd and work towards being at our best for when the Rugby World Cup starts.”

Before that Ireland game, England have a double-header against Wales with the first away in Cardiff on Saturday 5 August and the second at Twickenham on Saturday 12 August. Their final fixture before they travel to France for the World Cup is against Fiji at Twickenham on Saturday 26 August.

Meanwhile Leinster this afternoon confirmed a friendly against Chile on Friday 18 November at Energia Park (kick-poff 2pm).

Chile will make their Rugby World Cup debut at France 2023 after qualifying with a one-point win against USA. They will take their place in Pool D and will play England, Japan and Samoa for the first time as well as face Argentina in the first all-South American match in Rugby World Cup history.

“We are always looking for ways to give our players and indeed our coaches opportunities to test themselves and in this window there was an opportunity to look at something different,” said Leinster’s Leo Cullen.

“With many of our players away with Ireland and with Ireland ‘A’ during the month of November, I’m looking forward to seeing what the players can deliver against an international side.”

Admission to the game will be free of charge.