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Bulls vs Lions

What the model says about this fixture, at either ground and at a neutral one, with the record behind it. Ratings as at 2026-10-19.

Who wins, and where it is played
Bulls at home30-17 average
Bulls 80.0%draw 2.5%17.5% Lions
Lions at home23-24 average
Lions 43.1%draw 2.5%54.4% Bulls
Neutral ground27-19 average
Bulls 70.1%draw 2.5%27.4% Lions

Each figure is 5,000 simulations of this fixture. The score is where those runs are centred, not a likely scoreline — a rugby result is spread far too widely for any single one to be likely.

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How the runs finished

Winning margin across 5,000 simulations of this fixture. Bars right of the centre are Bulls wins; the faded bars at each end hold everything beyond 75 points.

Margin percentiles

  • Middle 8 in 10
  • Middle half
  • Median
  • Level
  • Average

Eight runs in ten finished between 4 Lions and 33 Bulls, half of them between 1 Bulls and 21 Bulls, with the middle run at 10 Bulls.

Those are gaps rather than scorelines. How much scoring the match produces is drawn separately — between 29 and 67 points in eight runs out of ten — so one bar covers many scores. The middle run above is 23-13 on a tight afternoon and 33-23 on an open one.

Why Bulls are favoured

How the model arrives at the chance of Bulls winning. It starts at an even 50%, and each line below adds to that or takes from it, in percentage points (pp): a bar to the right helps Bulls, a bar to the left helps Lions.

Even match50.0%
Rating gap+15.9 pp

Bulls 1862, Lions 1664 — 198 points, favouring Bulls

Venue+14.7 pp

Bulls are at home

Form and context-0.6 pp

Recent results, past meetings between the two sides, and days of rest. It has a limit, so it can nudge the rating but never overrule it.

Bulls win80.0%
Lions win17.5%
Draw2.5%

Head to head

Bulls12–0–7Lions

19 meetings, 2015 to 2026 · Bulls by 4.1 on average

Last 10: 8–0–2 · Bulls by 12.9 on average

DateMatchCompetitionVenue
2026-10-10Bulls 57–15 LionsUnited Rugby ChampionshipLoftus Versfeld
2026-01-31Lions 17–52 BullsUnited Rugby ChampionshipEllis Park
2025-11-29Bulls 33–43 LionsUnited Rugby ChampionshipLoftus Versfeld
2025-02-22Bulls 31–19 LionsUnited Rugby ChampionshipLoftus Versfeld
2025-01-25Lions 22–35 BullsUnited Rugby ChampionshipEllis Park

The 5 most recent meetings; the record above covers all 19. None of this feeds the forecast: both ratings already contain these results.

Rugby Tournament Predictor — unofficial, and not affiliated with any union, club or competition. About and sourcesForecasts are probabilities, not predictions of one result.

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