England and Wales find themselves placed in the same pool for the World Cup in 2027, promising a highly-anticipated early encounter in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Group F by Tonga and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This draw mirrors their infamous meeting in the group phase of the 2015 tournament, where a Welsh win at England's home ground contributed to the English team's shock group stage elimination.
Key Pool Draws
Ireland alongside the Scots have likewise been drawn in a pool once again, just as the scenario from the 2023 edition. On that occasion, they claimed a 36-14 win, with Scotland failing to advance to the quarter-finals.
Uruguay and Portugal, who each made a strong impression as underdogs in France, round out that same group.
Notably, the winners of these two groups are kept apart from holders and world number one the Springboks until the showpiece match, presuming the Springboks win their own group.
Tournament Ramifications
If the groups play out in line with the current world rankings, further leading contenders like the All Blacks and France would remain separated from the likes of England and the Irish all the way to the final.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on that half of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Draw Blockbuster Fixture
Hosts the Wallabies find themselves alongside their trans-Tasman rivals and triple champions New Zealand in Pool A.
Australia will kick off the tournament in Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a marquee fixture designed to jump-start the event.
Elsewhere, holders South Africa have been paired with the Azzurri, the Lelos and the Oaks. The French team are grouped with Japan, 2031 hosts the USA and Samoa.
Larger Tournament for 2027
Los Pumas will face Fiji, Los Leones and Canada as the tournament expands to 24 teams from the twenty who competed in France.
The 2027 tournament will introduce a last-16 round for the first time in the competition's existence.
Although the winner of England and Wales's group may be kept apart from some of the rugby's heavyweights early on, they will have to face the runner-up from Pool B – probably the Italians – in the first knockout round.
Four of the other six group winners will face a team that finished third from the initial group phase.
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
