Portugal vs Ireland Prediction & Betting Tips - Test Matchs

Prediction published on 10/07/2025, 14:00  by Steve Ashfield | Modified on 11/07/2025 at 08:08 in Rugby Predictions

Portugal play Ireland in a rugby union international for the first time. Can they continue their impressive form and cause a massive surprise against one of the best teams in the world? Read our match prediction below.

The Portuguese side have qualified for the 2027 Rugby Union World Cup. They finished fourth in this year’s Rugby Europe Championship but have lost their last two matches against Spain and Romania.

Portugal played in the 2023 World Cup finals but failed to make it out of the pool stage with one win, a draw and two defeats. Of four friendly internationals played last year, three were lost with heavy losses in Scotland and South Africa.

Ireland played an away fixture in Georgia last weekend and won 34-5. That took their recent record to eight wins in ten matches. Several changes have been made to their starting line-up with a couple of debutants being fielded.

It will be a severely-weakened line-up for Ireland as the visitors have 17 players currently on duty wih the Lions. In addition to that, Jacob Stockdale sustained an injury in last week's win over Georgia and will not be playing in this match.

We tip Ireland to win on a -29.5 points handicap.