England together with their Welsh counterparts have been drawn in an identical group for the World Cup in 2027, promising a highly-anticipated pool stage clash in the tournament Down Under. Completing the group 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 Twickenham played a part in the hosts' surprise group stage elimination.
Key Pool Pairings
Ireland and Scotland also share a group together, replicating the situation from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, they secured a 36-14 win, with Scotland unable to advance to the quarter-finals.
Los Teros and Os Lobos, who each impressed as surprise packages in the last World Cup, round out that same group.
Significantly, the victors of these two groups cannot meet defending champions and world number one the Springboks before the showpiece match, assuming the South Africans top their own group.
Knockout Ramifications
If the pools play out according to the current global standings, further leading contenders like New Zealand and France would also be kept apart from the likes of the English and the Irish until the championship decider.
Under those circumstances, Argentina would be the other top-ranked nation on that half of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams.
Tournament Hosts Draw Major Opener
Hosts the Wallabies 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 Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a blockbuster match designed to launch the competition.
Elsewhere, reigning champions the Springboks have been paired with the Azzurri, Georgia and Romania. France are in a pool with Japan, 2031 hosts the United States and Samoa.
Larger Tournament for 2027
Argentina will face Fiji, Spain and Canada as the World Cup expands to 24 teams from the twenty who took part in 2023.
This edition will feature a round of 16 round for the very first time in Rugby World Cup history.
While the winner of Pool F may avoid some of the rugby's heavyweights early on, they will have to face the second-placed team from Pool B – probably Italy – in the first knockout round.
Four of the other six group winners will play 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
