England together with Wales have been drawn in an identical group for the 2027 RWC, promising a major early clash in the tournament Down Under. Completing the group in Group F by Tonga and Zimbabwe.
This pairing mirrors their memorable meeting in the group phase of the 2015 tournament, where a Welsh win at Twickenham played a part in the English team's surprise group stage elimination.
Key Pool Pairings
The Irish alongside Scotland also share a group once again, replicating the scenario from the 2023 edition. On that occasion, Ireland claimed a 36-14 win, with their opponents unable to progress to the quarter-finals.
Los Teros and Os Lobos, both made a strong impression as surprise packages in the last World Cup, complete that Pool D.
Significantly, the winners of both Pool D and Pool F are kept apart from defending champions and top-ranked the Springboks until the final, presuming the Springboks win their own group.
Tournament Implications
If the groups conclude in line with the current global standings, other leading contenders like New Zealand and France would also be kept apart from the likes of the English and the Irish until the championship decider.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on the same half of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Tournament Hosts Draw Major Opener
Hosts the Wallabies find themselves together with their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners the All Blacks in Pool A.
The Wallabies will kick off the World Cup in Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a blockbuster fixture aimed at jump-start the competition.
In other groups, holders the Springboks have drawn the Azzurri, Georgia and Romania. France are in a pool with Japan, future hosts the United States and Samoa.
Larger Tournament for 2027
Los Pumas will take on the Flying Fijians, Spain and the Canadian team as the tournament expands to twenty-four nations from the 20 who took part in 2023.
The 2027 tournament will introduce a last-16 round for the first time in the competition's history.
While the victor of Pool F may be kept apart from some of the game's heavyweights initially, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – probably the Italians – in the first knockout round.
Four of the remaining six group winners will face a third-placed side from the initial group phase.
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
