England and Wales have been drawn in an identical pool for the World Cup in 2027, setting up a major pool stage encounter in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Group F by Tonga and Zimbabwe.
This draw mirrors their infamous clash in the group phase of the 2015 World Cup, where Wales' victory at Twickenham played a part in the hosts' shock early exit.
Key Group Pairings
The Irish alongside Scotland also share a group once again, replicating the situation from the 2023 edition. On that occasion, they claimed a convincing win, with Scotland failing to advance to the knockout stages.
Uruguay and Portugal, who each made a strong impression as surprise packages in France, complete that Pool D.
Significantly, the victors of these two groups are kept apart from holders and world number one the Springboks until the showpiece match, presuming the South Africans win their assigned pool.
Knockout Ramifications
Should the pools play out according to the current world rankings, other top favourites like the All Blacks and France would also be kept apart from the likes of England and the Irish all the way to the championship decider.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on the same side of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Tournament Hosts Draw Blockbuster Opener
Tournament hosts the Wallabies find themselves alongside their trans-Tasman rivals and triple champions New Zealand in Pool A.
The Wallabies will kick off the tournament in the city of Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a blockbuster match designed to launch the event.
In other groups, reigning champions the Springboks have been paired with the Azzurri, the Lelos and the Oaks. France are in a pool with the Brave Blossoms, future hosts the USA and Manu Samoa.
Expanded Tournament for 2027
Argentina will take on the Flying Fijians, Los Leones and Canada as the tournament grows to 24 teams from the 20 who competed in 2023.
The 2027 tournament will introduce a last-16 stage for the first time in Rugby World Cup history.
While the winner of England and Wales's group may avoid some of the rugby's heavyweights early on, they will meet the runner-up from Group B – probably Italy – in the last 16.
Four of the other six pool winners will face a team that finished third from the pool stages.
RWC 2027 Groups
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
