England together with their Welsh counterparts have been drawn in an identical group 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 the Zimbabwean Sables.
This draw recalls their famous meeting in the group phase of the 2015 World Cup, where a Welsh win at England's home ground played a part in the English team's surprise group stage elimination.
Key Pool Pairings
Ireland and Scotland also share a pool once again, replicating the scenario from the France 2023 tournament. On that occasion, they secured a convincing victory, with Scotland unable to advance to the quarter-finals.
Uruguay and Os Lobos, who each impressed as underdogs in France, complete that Pool D.
Notably, the winners of these two groups cannot meet defending champions and world number one South Africa before the final, presuming the Springboks win their own group.
Tournament Implications
Should the groups play out in line with the current global standings, further leading contenders like New Zealand and Les Bleus would remain separated from both the English and Ireland until the championship decider.
Under those circumstances, Los Pumas would be the other highly-seeded nation on that side of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Draw Blockbuster Opener
Tournament hosts Australia find themselves together with their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Pool A.
Australia will kick off the World Cup in the city of Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a marquee fixture aimed at jump-start the competition.
In other groups, reigning champions South Africa have been paired with the Azzurri, Georgia and the Oaks. The French team are in a pool with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the USA and Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Argentina will face the Flying Fijians, Los Leones and Canada as the World Cup grows to 24 teams from the twenty who competed in France.
This edition will introduce a last-16 round for the first time in the competition's history.
Although the winner of Pool F may avoid some of the rugby's heavyweights early on, they will meet the second-placed team from Group B – probably Italy – in the last 16.
A total of four of the remaining six pool 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
