Steve Borthwick has praised ‘incredible’ Three Lions manager Gareth Southgate ahead of Euro 2024, urging England players to attract a new dynasty of rugby fans on their summer tour of Japan and New Zealand .

England manager Steve Borthwick has urged his side to make history this summer and attract a new dynasty of fans after discussing the ‘privilege’ of leading his country with Gareth Southgate.

Borthwick and his England football counterpart Southgate are set to make big appearances in different hemispheres in the weeks ahead.

Southgate’s side open their Euro 2024 campaign against Serbia on Sunday, while England’s rugby team is in Japan ahead of their summer opener in Tokyo on Saturday.

“I’ve spoken to Gareth a few times and exchanged several WhatsApp’s,” Borthwick said.

‘He has incredible experience in understanding the process of preparing the best teams in international sport. I know (rugby captain) Jamie (George) and the players will send a message and we wish them all the best and a successful European Championships.

England manager Steve Borthwick has hailed the experience of Three Lions boss Gareth Southgate as two people who have worked hard to lead their side to success this summer.

England are preparing for big tests against Japan and New Zealand next month.

Southgate’s side open their Euro 2024 campaign against Serbia in Gelsenkirchen on Sunday night.

‘I’ve had discussions with several top coaches about how privileged it is to be able to play in big teams and big tournaments with teams like this.

‘That’s the best word I can use to describe it: special and privileged. I hope this experience with the England team will be the time of their lives for the players.

‘I hope they have a good time as well as winning the Test match.’

England’s rugby stars have been given permission to attend English football matches this summer, but the time difference between the hemispheres may make it difficult.

‘We will prioritize preparation while ensuring it is accessible to players. We have a lot of very passionate football players in our team,’ Borthwick said.

England face Japan, managed by former coach Eddie Jones, on Saturday before traveling to New Zealand for two big Tests against the All Blacks.

The Japan match will be the first England senior national team match not to be broadcast on mainstream television in over 20 years.

Due to a lack of established interest in the match from existing broadcasters, it will instead be broadcast on RugbyPass TV, which is owned by World Rugby, the sport’s governing body.

Asked whether that was a concern about the marketing influence of English rugby, Borthwick pointed out that he had urged players to embrace the social media age to raise their own profiles and those of their teams. ‘I’ve spoken to a group of players and it’s clear we want to help rugby grow in this country,’ Borthwick said.

England’s summer tour against Japan under former coach Eddie Jones begins on Saturday.

‘One of the challenges we face is the younger age group and their interest in rugby. I encourage my players to find different ways to connect with younger age groups.

‘There are some great role models on this team, so the more exposure we get, the better. The most important thing we can do is build a successful England team.

‘That’s what we’re working on. At the same time, having positive role models is really important for me and this England team.

Jamie has a captain who is a truly positive role model and we plan to take this series one step further in building a successful team.’

A new generation of players is emerging in England, including Marcus Smith, Tommy Freeman and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso.

British stars are known to have access to the photo and video media library provided by the RFU, from which they can import content for use on social media.

It is also noticeable that since British athletes landed in Japan, they have posted a lot of behind-the-scenes content about the Far East, such as sumo watching trips and unusual animal cafes.

England is seeing a new generation of players emerge, including Marcus Smith (pictured), Tommy Freeman and Emmanuel Pay-Waboso.

Borthwick urged his players to embrace the ‘social media age’ with the match against Japan not being broadcast on mainstream TV.

“The RFU has also been very supportive in other aspects of what we are looking at to increase interest in the team and increase the impact of our players,” Borthwick said.

‘This is a very diverse England team and a young England team with the ability to connect with the media following in many different ways.’