ustralia will host a Nations Championship test match between Japan and Ireland later this year, governing body Rugby Australia said Thursday.
Rugby Australia said Japan and Ireland will square off on neutral ground in the city of Newcastle, north of Sydney, on July 11.
Irish Rugby Football Union president John O'Driscoll said he expected the game would draw a "huge" number of expat fans.
Japan Rugby president Masato Tsuchida said his side was "delighted to face the formidable Irish team" in Australia.
The inaugural Nations Championship men's competition will be contested by 12 teams -- including the northern hemisphere's Six Nations sides, and southern hemisphere heavyweights New Zealand, South Africa and Australia.
It is billed as a once-every-two-years competition.
The winner will be crowned at a finals weekend played at Twickenham in November.