The fitness of the rival captains has been a major talking point.

Italy was the scene of some of Europe's biggest protests over last weekend against Israel's continued offensive in Gaza, which was sparked two years ago when Hamas militants crossed the border to attack Israeli communities.

In response, the national rugby unions of Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Ireland, England, Scotland, France and Italy said in a joint statement on Tuesday that players who joined the R360 project would make themselves ineligible for national team selection.