Coach Warren Gatland says pressure is intensifying to shift next year’s British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa back several months to cater for a rugby landscape reshaped by COVID-19.

Lions coach Gatland confirmed he will sit on an overnight conference call with team management to “talk through scenarios” around the dates of the eight-match tour, which is presently scheduled for July-August.

While the tour is more than a year away, speculation has swirled that it could potentially face cancellation or at very least a delay.

The coronavirus has infected more than 37,000 people in South Africa and caused nearly 800 deaths.

Reports have surfaced leading European nations will target additional international matches in July to bolster their dwindling financial reserves, pushing the Lions tour back to October-November.

The tour also clashes with the new dates for the postponed Tokyo Olympics, although Lions management have previously said that alone won’t prompt any shift.

“I’m conscious of what’s best for the game,” Gatland told AAP on Thursday.

“There’a a lot of things going on at the moment that if it does get pushed back a little bit, we have to deal with that.

“The Lions tour is something I know the players have been looking forward to doing and it’s really important for South Africa, I know they’re desperate for it to go ahead.

“If it means that we have to move some dates, we have to be flexible on that.”

Gatland will step aside from his Chiefs coaching role next year to lead the Lions for a third successive tour, having also been the forwards coach when they last toured South Africa in 2009.

He said it is critical for rugby that next year’s tour goes ahead, given the financial implications particularly for South Africa.

“The Lions is incredibly important to the southern hemisphere because it does generate a huge amount of money for the country that’s hosting.

“It’s something the southern hemisphere definitely want to keep on board and … from a playing perspective, it’s something the northern hemisphere clubs really look forward to being involved with.”

World Rugby is exploring a revamp of its global calendar to align the northern and southern hemispheres in the same international windows.

Gatland supported the move and believed Lions tours, traditionally staged in the middle of the year, could successfully be shifted to October on a regular basis.