The Barbarians are facing an All Blacks XV this weekend at Brentford's Gtech Community Stadium in London .

Rugby's financial landscape is peculiar at the best of times: on one side, teams competing weekly are barely breaking even, whilst on the other, the British and Irish Lions tour a single nation every four years and generate enormous profits.

Yet somewhere in between sits an oval ball institution that seemingly belongs to a bygone amateur age, but in 2025 remains amongst the sport's most iconic brands.

For the uninitiated, the Barbarians is an invitational rugby side with an invited coach, where players don their club socks alongside striking black and white hooped jerseys, throwing caution to the wind.

They stretch the game's regulations to their limits, refuse to kick for poi

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