England and Wales have been drawn in the same group for the World Cup in 2027, promising a highly-anticipated pool stage encounter in Australia. They are joined in Group F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and Zimbabwe.
This draw mirrors their memorable clash in the group phase of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at Twickenham played a part in the English team's shock early exit.
Other Notable Pool Pairings
The Irish alongside the Scots also share a group together, replicating the situation from the France 2023 tournament. In that tournament, they claimed a convincing victory, with Scotland unable to progress to the knockout stages.
Uruguay and Os Lobos, both made a strong impression as underdogs in the last World Cup, round out that same group.
Notably, the victors of these two groups are kept apart from defending champions and top-ranked the Springboks before the showpiece match, assuming the South Africans top their assigned pool.
Knockout Implications
If the pools conclude according to the current world rankings, further leading contenders like New Zealand and Les Bleus would remain separated from the likes of the English and Ireland all the way to the championship decider.
Under those circumstances, Argentina would be the remaining top-ranked nation on that half of the knockout draw as England and Ireland.
Hosts Draw Major Opener
Hosts Australia have been drawn together with their trans-Tasman rivals and triple champions the All Blacks in Group A.
Australia will open the World Cup in Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a blockbuster fixture designed to launch the event.
In other groups, reigning champions the Springboks have drawn Italy, the Lelos and the Oaks. The French team are grouped with Japan, 2031 hosts the United States and Samoa.
Expanded Tournament for 2027
Los Pumas will face Fiji, Los Leones and the Canadian team as the World Cup expands to twenty-four nations from the twenty who competed in 2023.
This edition will feature a last-16 round for the very first time in Rugby World Cup history.
While the winner of Pool F may avoid some of the game's biggest beasts early on, they will have to face the runner-up from Pool B – most likely the Italians – in the last 16.
A total of four of the other six group winners will face a third-placed side from the pool stages.
RWC 2027 Draw
Pool A
- New Zealand
- Australia
- Chile
- Hong Kong
Pool B
- South Africa
- Italy
- Georgia
- Romania
Pool C
- Argentina
- Fiji
- Spain
- Canada
Pool D
- Ireland
- Scotland
- Uruguay
- Portugal
Pool E
- France
- Japan
- USA
- Samoa
Pool F
- England
- Wales
- Tonga
- Zimbabwe
