England together with their Welsh counterparts will face off in an identical group for the World Cup in 2027, setting up a major early clash in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Pool F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This draw echoes their memorable meeting in the group phase of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at Twickenham played a part in the hosts' surprise early exit.
Key Group Pairings
The Irish and the Scots have likewise been drawn in a pool together, replicating the situation from the France 2023 tournament. In that tournament, Ireland claimed a convincing win, with Scotland failing to progress to the knockout stages.
Uruguay and Os Lobos, both made a strong impression as surprise packages in France, complete that Pool D.
Notably, the winners of these two groups are kept apart from holders and world number one South Africa until the final, assuming the South Africans top their own group.
Knockout Implications
If the pools conclude in line with the current world rankings, further leading contenders like New Zealand and Les Bleus would also be kept apart from both the English and the Irish all the way to the championship decider.
In that scenario, Los Pumas would be the other highly-seeded nation on the same side of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Hosts Face Blockbuster Fixture
Hosts the Wallabies have been drawn alongside their great rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Group A.
The Wallabies will kick off the tournament in Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a marquee match designed to jump-start the event.
Elsewhere, holders the Springboks have drawn Italy, Georgia and the Oaks. The French team are in a pool with the Brave Blossoms, future hosts the USA and Manu Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Los Pumas will face Fiji, Spain and Canada as the tournament grows to twenty-four nations from the twenty who competed in 2023.
This edition will feature a last-16 stage for the very first time in Rugby World Cup history.
Although the winner of Pool F may avoid some of the rugby's heavyweights initially, they will meet the runner-up from Group B – most likely Italy – in the last 16.
A total of four of the remaining six pool winners will face a team that finished third from the initial group phase.
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
