Sri Lanka will welcome English Premiership rugby side Northampton Saints for a tour later this month, featuring a main match against the Asia Pacific Lions and a celebrity cricket exhibition game.
Sri Lanka is preparing to host a significant international rugby event when the Asia Pacific Lions face off against Northampton Saints, an English Premiership club, later this month. The tour was officially launched at City of Dreams with the attendance of Sports Minister Sunil Kumara Gamage, who highlighted the strategic importance of the event for the nation's sporting calendar.
The centrepiece of the tour will be the rugby match scheduled for August 28 at 4:30 p.m. at the Colombo Racecourse International Stadium. The event will showcase competitive rugby at an elite level to local audiences who rarely have opportunities to witness matches of this calibre on home soil.
Beyond the main fixture, the tour programme includes a T20 charity cricket match scheduled for August 23 at 7:30 p.m. at the CCC Grounds. This exhibition game will feature international rugby players alongside Sri Lankan cricket veterans including Aravinda de Silva, Mahela Jayawardene and Chaminda Vaas, blending two major sports in a single event.
The broader tour agenda extends beyond competitive matches to include community rugby clinics, coach education programmes and youth development initiatives across the country. According to Sports Minister Gamage, the initiative aims to position Sri Lanka as a leading sports tourism destination while simultaneously strengthening the development infrastructure for rugby at the grassroots level and enhancing the nation's international sporting reputation.
