The Ashes: Dates, schedule, history & more

After a thrilling 2-2 drawn series in 2023, thoughts are already turning to the next Ashes series between England and Australia which will start in November 2025.

Hopes will be high that the five-match battle down under will be just as captivating as the last series, where Australia kept hold of the Ashes after winning the opening two Tests before England clawed back with wins at Headingley and the Oval.

What are the Ashes?

The Ashes is a Test series played between rivals England and Australia and is hosted in turn by each country at least once every two years.

It originated in the late 1800s when a British newspaper wrote an obituary of English cricket, claiming it had died following Australia's first-ever Test win on English soil in 1882.

A bail from that match was allegedly cremated and the remains taken to Australia, with England's captain Ivo Bligh claiming that his team would regain the prize that had by now been encased in an urn.

The winner receives a small, terracotta urn containing the Ashes and, if a series is drawn, the previous holders retain the prize.

Australia have won 34 Ashes series, with England winning 32 and the teams have shared the spoils on seven occasions.

Ashes venues

The two teams will meet at five different stadia across Australia during the Ashes. Those venues are:

• Perth - Optus Stadium
• Brisbane - Gabba
• Adelaide - Adelaide Oval
• Melbourne - MCG
• Sydney - SCG

Ashes dates

The first Test will start on 21st November with the series concluding in early January. The confirmed dates for the 2025/26 Ashes series are:

• First Test - 21st-25th November
• Second Test - 4th-8th December
• Third Test - 17th-21st December
• Fourth Test - 26th-30th December
• Fifth Test - 4th-8th January

Ashes history

The 2023 series was the seventh occasion when the Ashes had been drawn and both teams will feel unfortunate that they were not able to secure the Urn outright. It stayed in Australian hands after they had won the previous series 4-0.

The tourists claimed a thrilling two-wicket win at Edgbaston in the opening clash and England were unable to stop them winning at Lord’s, despite some defiant batting from skipper Ben Stokes.

England’s fortunes changed at Headingley when bowlers Chris Woakes and Mark Wood saw them to a three-wicket win in Leeds and the home side were left frustrated at Old Trafford when it seemed they were on the cusp of levelling the series only to be denied by the weather.

They did, however, claim the win in the final Test at the Oval, where Stuart Broad took the crucial wicket on his last appearance.

Ashes iconic players

The early years of the Ashes rivalry passed without too much incident, but that all changed in the 1932/33 series in Australia, when England adopted the then-controversial tactic of Bodyline, with fast bowler Harold Larwood taking 33 wickets as the tourists won the series 4-1.

Sir Don Bradman - who scored 5,028 runs overall in Ashes clashes - helped the Baggy Greens exact revenge in style, going unbeaten for 20 years until 1953, including The Invincibles tour of 1948 - when Australia went undefeated throughout their entire tour of England.

A similar lengthy run of Aussie success came between 1989 and 2005, when Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath tore through England time and time again, eventually ending up with 195 and 157 Ashes wickets, respectively.

In between those long runs of Australian success came perhaps the most iconic individual performance of all-time in the great rivalry, as the 1981 renewal was dubbed ‘Botham's Ashes’.

England all-rounder Ian Botham started the series in abject fashion, but losing the captaincy after the second Test saw him rejuvenated and he took the tourists apart with both bat and ball across the next three matches - including in the 'Miracle of Headingley'.

Stuart Broad is England’s leading Ashes wicket-taker with 153, while the record overall is held by Shane Warne, who took 195 in his glittering career.