England and Wales find themselves placed in an identical group for the 2027 RWC, setting up a highly-anticipated pool stage encounter in the tournament Down Under. Completing the group in Group F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This draw mirrors their infamous meeting in the group phase of the 2015 World Cup, where a Welsh win at England's home ground contributed to the hosts' shock early exit.
Other Notable Group Draws
The Irish alongside the Scots have likewise been drawn in a pool once again, replicating the situation from the France 2023 tournament. On that occasion, Ireland secured a 36-14 win, with their opponents unable to progress to the quarter-finals.
Los Teros and Portugal, who each impressed as surprise packages in the last World Cup, round out that same group.
Notably, the winners of these two groups are kept apart from defending champions and top-ranked South Africa before the showpiece match, presuming the Springboks win their assigned pool.
Knockout Ramifications
Should the groups conclude according to the current world rankings, further leading contenders like New Zealand and France would also be kept apart from both the English and Ireland until the final.
Under those circumstances, Argentina would be the remaining top-ranked nation on that half of the knockout draw as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Face Blockbuster Opener
Hosts the Wallabies have been drawn together with their trans-Tasman rivals and triple champions the All Blacks in Pool A.
Australia will open the tournament in the city of Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a marquee fixture aimed at jump-start the event.
Elsewhere, reigning champions South Africa have been paired with Italy, Georgia and Romania. France are in a pool with Japan, 2031 hosts the USA and Manu Samoa.
Larger Tournament for 2027
Los Pumas will take on the Flying Fijians, Spain and Canada as the tournament expands to 24 teams from the 20 who took part in 2023.
The 2027 tournament will feature a last-16 round for the very first time in the competition's history.
Although the winner of Pool F may avoid some of the game's heavyweights initially, they will have to face the second-placed team from Group B – most likely Italy – in the first knockout round.
Four of the remaining six group winners will play a third-placed side from the pool stages.
Rugby World Cup 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
