It is the first Australian tour of Argentina since 1997, and the first sole Australian tour of Argentina since 1987. The two teams will be contesting the Puma Trophy, for which the hosts, Argentina, are the holders, having held the trophy since 2023.
The initial fixtures were reported by La Nación in October 2025[6] before being confirmed by Rugby Australia (RA) in November.[1] Both teams are also set to play South Africa in a one-off match following the Test series.[1][2][7]
Since the advent of professionalism in rugby union in the mid-1990s, the traditional touring practice among the Southern Hemisphere teams (Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa) was largely abandoned. Once a regular feature of the international calendar, reciprocal tours between these nations were replaced by the annual competition known as the Tri Nations Series. Under this format, each team faced the others twice per season, once at home and once away, with the side accumulating the most points crowned champions. In 2012, Argentina was admitted to the competition, and was formally rebranded as The Rugby Championship. Prior to Argentina's inclusion, the three founding teams had toured the country on multiple occasions (Australia and South Africa three times each, and New Zealand twice). However, following Argentina's integration into the expanded competition, the annual round-robin format became the primary means for Southern Hemisphere international fixtures.
In 2025, South African Rugby Union (SARU) confirmed reports[8][9] that the New Zealand national team would undertake a four-Test tour of South Africa, with additional tour matches scheduled for 2026.[10] This coincided with changes to the structure of The Rugby Championship, which was changed from an annual competition to a biennial one.[5] This newly revised schedule allowed for the inclusion of including a planned Australian tour of Argentina in 2026; the first time since 1997 (29 years).
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Argentina 
