The British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa is set for a thrilling decider when the Lions meet the Springboks at Cape Town Stadium. Warren Gatland has made six changes after last week's humbling 27-0 loss, which left the series all square at 1-1. Kick off is 5pm BST today. Make sure you know how to watch a British and Irish Lions live stream from anywhere.
Date: 3rd July – 7th August 2021
Venue: Cape Town Stadium, South Africa
US stream: Peacock (7-day free trial)
Watch anywhere: Try ExpressVPN risk-free today
AUS stream: Stan (7-day free trial)
UK stream: Now (£34/month)
"We've no excuses from last week – the Springboks put us under pressure in the second half and deserved the win," Gatland told BBC Sport. "We have to be much better than that second-half performance, and I believe we will be."
The Lions coach has made sweeping changes ahead of the winner-takes-all clash. Hooker Ken Owens, prop Wyn Jones, scrum-half Ali Price, centre Bundee Aki, wing Josh Adams and full-back Liam Williams make the starting XV. Owen Farrell, Taulupe Faletau, Anthony Watson and Stuart Hogg are out. But fly-half Finn Russell, lock Adam Beard and number eight Sam Simmonds come into the squad for the first time. Kyle Sinckler if free to play after his biting charge was dismissed.
Meanwhile, South Africa head coach Jacques Nienaber has made two injury-enforced changes for 3rd Test decider. Cobus Reinach and Lood de Jager have been selected to start, in place of Faf de Klerk (muscle strain) and Pieter-Steph du Toit (shoulder injury). That's two huge losses for South Africa, who were beaten 17-22 in the series opener, before thrashing the tourists 27-9 last week.
The Lions lost the Test series 2-1 back in 2009, but with a 1-0 series lead going into Saturday's game, Warren Gatland's men will have high hopes of repeating their 1997 victory, when big beasts like Martin Johnson, Lawrence Dallaglio and Gregor Townsend endured a brutal tour.
Rugby fans in the US can stream the 3rd Test of the 2021 British & Irish Lions tour on Peacock TV for only $4.99 a month (you even get a 7-day free trial). Make sure you know how to watch a British and Irish Lions live stream from anywhere in the world.
Watch the 2021 British and Irish Lions for free
Good news: Peacock has the rights to stream the 2021 British and Irish Lions Tour in the States and new users get a 7-day free trial. No contract, cancel anytime. It's the cheapest way to watch the final Test.
More good news: Stan has the right to stream the Tour in Australia. Subscription to Stan costs AU$10 a month, the necessary Sport add-on a further $10. However, new users get a 7-day free trial of the Sport add-on.
Of course, if you're away from home you'll need to use a VPN to access your local streaming service without being geo-blocked. We recommend ExpressVPN as it comes with a risk-free 30-day money-back guarantee.
Watch the British and Irish Lions from anywhere using a VPN
Even if you have subscribed to the relevant 2021 British and Irish Lions tour rights holders, you won't be able to access them when outside your own country. The service will know your location based on your IP address, and will automatically block your access.
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) helps you get around this obstacle. VPNs are a doddle to use and create a private connection between your device and the internet. All the information passing back and forth is entirely encrypted.
There are many VPN providers out there, with some more reliable and safe than others. As a rule, we’d suggest a paid-for service such as ExpressVPN which offers a 100 per cent risk-free money back guarantee. If you're not happy with the service any time within the first 30-days, then you can cancel with no penalties at all.
Watch a British and Irish Lions live stream in the USA
NBC Sports has the exclusive rights to show the British & Irish Lions Tour 2021 in the USA. The network will stream the 3rd Test live on its Peacock TV streaming platform on Saturday 7th August 2021.
Subscription costs $4.99 a month (or $9.99 commercial-free). That's a bargain when you compare it to the price that UK fans pay. Better yet, new users get a 7-day free trial.
Remember, you'll need to use a VPN to access Peacock if you're away from the US during the Lions tour.
Peacock Premium gets you a British and Irish Lions live stream, an Olympics live stream and Premier League soccer, tons of US boxsets including The Office, and thousands of hit movies such as Apollo 13. At only $4.99 a month, it's an absolute steal.
Watch a British and Irish Lions live stream in Australia
If you're prepared for some early morning starts you can stream the Lions Tour on Stan.
The Aussie streaming service costs $10 a month, plus you'll need the Sport add-on at an additional $20 a month. But – good news – the Sport add-on is free for the first 7 days.
Remember, you'll need to use a VPN to access Stan if you're away from the Oz this summer.
Watch a British & Irish Lions live stream in the UK
Sky Sports has the rights to the British & Irish Lions' eight-match tour of South Africa, including the 3rd and final Test. Here are the best Sky TV deals.
Even without a full Sky subscription, though, fans can enjoy British & Irish Lions live stream with a Now day pass (£9.99) or monthly pass (£33.99). Make sure you've got your VPN handy if you're stuck abroad.
Watch a British and Irish Lions live stream in South Africa
As ever, SuperSport is the place to watch the Lions Tour in South Africa, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The African online sports channel will broadcast the games via its DStv satellite platform in South Africa. You can sign up to DStv here. Failing that, head to any local sports bar to watch the Springboks in action.
British and Irish Lions Tour 2021 fixtures
03/07/2021
Lions vs British & Irish Lions – Johannesburg Emirates Airline Park
Kick off: 5pm BST
07/07/2021
Cell C Sharks vs British & Irish Lions – Johannesburg Emirates Airline Park
Kick off: 7pm BST
10/07/2021
Vodacom Bulls vs British & Irish Lions – Pretoria Loftus Versfeld
Kick off: 5pm BST
14/07/2021
South Africa ‘A’ vs British & Irish Lions – Cape Town Stadium
Kick off: 7pm BST
17/07/2021
DHL Stormers vs British & Irish Lions – Cape Town Stadium
Kick off: 5pm BST
24/07/2021 - 1st Test
Springboks vs British & Irish Lions – 1st Test, Cape Town Stadium
Kick off: 5pm BST
31/07/2021 – 2nd Test
Springboks vs British & Irish Lions - 2nd Test, Cape Town Stadium
Kick off: 5pm BST
07/08/2021 – 3rd Test
Springboks vs British & Irish Lions - 3rd Test, Cape Town Stadium
Kick off: 5pm BST
British and Irish Lions squad for 2021
Tadhg Beirne (Ire), Jack Conan (Ire), Luke Cowan-Dickie (Eng), Tom Curry (Eng), Zander Fagerson (Sco), Taulupe Faletau (Wal), Tadhg Furlong (Ire), Jamie George (Eng), Iain Henderson (Ire), Jonny Hill (Eng), Maro Itoje (Eng), Wyn Jones (Wal), Courtney Lawes (Eng), Ken Owens (Wal), Sam Simmonds (Eng), Kyle Sinckler (Eng)*, Rory Sutherland (Sco), Justin Tipuric (Wal), Mako Vunipola (Eng), Hamish Watson (Sco), Josh Adams (Wal), Bundee Aki (Ire), Dan Biggar (Wal), Elliot Daly (Eng), Gareth Davies (Wal), Owen Farrell (Eng), Chris Harris (Sco), Robbie Henshaw (Ire), Stuart Hogg (Sco), Conor Murray (Ire), Ali Price (Sco), Louis Rees-Zammit (Wal), Finn Russell (Sco), Duhan van der Merwe (Sco), Anthony Watson (Eng), Liam Williams (Wal).
British and Irish Lions Tour history & facts
1971 is often called "The Greatest Ever Tour". Barry John won superstar status with the range of his kicking repertoire and the manner in which he ghosted through the opponent's defence. The Legendary Welsh fly-half's 188 points remains a Lions record for one Tour. Now aged 76, he still can't go into a pub without being recognised.
The historic first ever Lions Tour took place in Otago, New Zealand. The tourists won 8-3 in front of a crowd of some 10,000 fans. There followed a further 18 games in New Zealand and 16 in Australia. 19 Victorian Rules (now called Aussie Rules) matches were also played to pay for the cost of the Tour.
Since that first tour in 1888, 835 players have represented the British & Irish Lions. From Jack Anderton in 1988 (cap number 1) to Finn Russell in 2017 (cap number 835), every player has made their mark on Lions history. Overall, the Lions have played 117 matches, winning 47, losing 59 and drawing 11.
'BIL' is the cuddly Lion mascot that travels everywhere with the British & Irish Lions. The youngest member of the squad is tasked with looking after BIL and must not let him out of their sight under any circumstances. In 2017, it was Maro Itoje’s turn. He promptly lost BIL and faced a number of 'forfeits'. Luckily for all concerned, BIL later turned up unharmed.
The British and Irish Lions 2021 tour opener against Japan will be played in front of 16,500 fans in Edinburgh after plans were signed off by the Scottish government. Expect a sea of red.
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