Ireland vs England Betting Tips: Six Nations Preview

• Date: Saturday 1st of February 2025

• Time: 16:45 pm BST

• Where to Watch: BBC, ITV, FranceTV, and RTE

The Six Nations gets underway on Friday, 31st January. However, most fans across the UK will be more interested in Saturday’s clash between England and Ireland, which could set the precedent for the rest of the tournament. Many are eagerly awaiting to see if England have improved as a team, with their last official match taking place in November of last year in a game they won 59-14 against Japan.

Ireland won the last Six Nations tournament in 2024, defending their title successfully from the previous year. Naturally, they will be keen for a hat-trick of successive Six Nations Championships and on paper, they’ve got everything it takes. They are ranked #2 in the overall international rugby rankings, with only South Africa above them. As for England, they currently sit at #7 in the rankings.

One key thing to note about this clash is that while Ireland achieved a Grand Slam in 2023, they suffered one loss in 2024 to prevent the back-to-back. This loss was, of course, delivered by England, who rose to the challenge and won 23 – 22 thanks to a last-ditch drop goal by Marcus Smith. Ireland will be keen for revenge, which is part of what makes this encounter so eagerly awaited.

On this page, we share a breakdown of the game, including the head-to-head record between the two teams, predicted lineups, and our Six Nations betting tips for the game. Of course, you can also find a comprehensive range of rugby odds for the match over on our sportsbook, alongside every other game in the 2025 Six Nations Championship!

Head-to-Head Record Between England and Ireland

When it comes to this particular head-to-head, both England and Ireland have had periods of dominance, as you can see in the table below, which shows the last ten meetings between the two teams:   

Date	Winning Team	Score	Event
9th March 2024	England	23 – 22	Six Nations
19th August 2023	Ireland	29 – 10	International Friendly
18th March 2023	Ireland	29 – 16	Six Nations
12th March 2022	Ireland	15 – 32	Six Nations
20th March 2021	Ireland	32 – 18	Six Nations
21st November 2020	England	18 – 7	Autumn Nations Cup
23rd February 2020	England	24 – 12	Six Nations
24th August 2019	England	57 – 15	International Friendly
2nd February 2019	England	20 – 32	Six Nations
18th March 2018	Ireland	15 – 24	Six Nations

Predicted Lineups

The lineups for both teams are relatively straightforward to predict, with clear, standout players in each role. One of the main questions will be whether Dan Sheehan makes the starting XV for Ireland after being named in the official squad while injured.

Sheehan made his return for his club, Leinster, against the Stormers last Saturday and was named Player of the Match after scoring 2 tries. Although this seems like great news for Irish fans, it’s starting to look as if Andy Farrell may keep him as an impact replacement for the first Six Nations game.

England Predicted XV: Ollie Lawrence, Freddie Steward, Tommy Freeman, Cadan Murley, Henry Slade, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Alex Mitchell, Ellis Genge, Will Stuart, Marcus Smith, Maro Itoje (Captain), George Martin, Ben Curry, Tommy Curry, Ben Earl.

Replacements:  Theo Dan, Fin Baxter, Joe Heyes, Ollie Chessum, Chandler Cunningham-South, Tom Willis, Harry Randall, Fin Smith.

Ireland Predicted XV: Hugo Keenan, Mack Hansen, Garry Ringrose, Bundee Aki, James Lowe; Sam Prendergast, Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Ronan Kelleher, Tadhg Furlong; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan, Tadhg Beirne, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris.

Replacements: Dan Sheehan, Cian Healy, Finlay Bealham, Ryan Baird, Jack Conan, Conor Murray, Jack Crowley, Robbie Henshaw.

Ireland vs England: Our Betting Tips

• Betting Tip 1: Ireland to Win -6.5  

• Betting Tip 2: Over 44.5 Total Points  

Ireland almost expected to win this encounter with England and start their campaign on the right foot. The Six Nations odds place them as -6.0 favourites. However, there are a lot of variables that need to be considered in this match.

The first of which is the unpredictability of the English squad, to the point of Steve Borthwick’s role as head coach being called into question. He made a bold decision for this Six Nations Championships, stripping Jamie George of his captaincy and giving it to Maro Itoje. The success of Maro on the pitch could be instrumental to the result in this encounter, with him certainly being the player to watch for England.

Adversely, for the Irish team, you cannot ignore their incredible run of form. They’ve won 4 of their last 5 international games in all competitions, with one of these wins being over South Africa, who are currently rated as the #1 team in the world. Of course, this game will also be taking place inside the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, giving Ireland a home advantage that often gets the team over the line.

We think that Ireland will be desperate to get revenge in this one, which could lead to a rather unfavourable scoreline for fans across England. They will be more motivated than ever to pick up a Grand Slam, too, which is why our Six Nations betting tips are for Ireland to win by -6.5, with over 44.5 points being scored in the match.

How to Bet on Ireland vs England Online

Looking to bet on the Six Nations game between England and Ireland? Here’s exactly how you can get started:

1. Sign in to your BetVictor account. If you’re not registered with us already, simply click on the green ‘Sign Up’ button in the top right corner and fill in the various fields that appear. From here, you can confirm your details and make a deposit to bet on Ireland vs England online.

2. Next, head to the sports betting page.

3. Click on ‘Rugby Union’ and then ‘Competitions’.

4. Select ‘Six Nations’ and a list of upcoming matches will appear.

5. Click on ‘Ireland vs England’ or another game you’d like to bet on.

6. Tap your desired selections to add them to the bet slip.

7. Last but not least, type in a stake size and confirm the wager!

Here at BetVictor, we have a huge range of different Six Nations betting markets to choose from, with all games throughout the competition being listed in our comprehensive sportsbook. You can also find each match on the in-play betting page as soon as it gets underway.

Before placing a bet on the Six Nations, why not check out our offers page too? There are plenty of different bonuses there, many of which can be used across all sports betting markets, including on rugby!

Frequently Asked Questions About Ireland vs England