The English side and their Welsh counterparts have been drawn in an identical group for the World Cup in 2027, promising a highly-anticipated early encounter in the tournament Down Under. Completing the group in Group F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This draw recalls their memorable clash in the group phase of the 2015 tournament, where a Welsh win at Twickenham contributed to the hosts' surprise early exit.
Key Group Draws
The Irish alongside the Scots also share a group together, replicating the situation from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, they claimed a convincing win, with Scotland unable to progress to the quarter-finals.
Uruguay and Os Lobos, both impressed as surprise packages in France, complete that same group.
Notably, the winners of these two groups cannot meet defending champions and world number one South Africa before the final, assuming the South Africans win their own group.
Knockout Ramifications
If the pools play out in line with the current global standings, other leading contenders like the All Blacks and Les Bleus would remain separated from both England and Ireland all the way to the championship decider.
In that scenario, Los Pumas would be the other highly-seeded nation on that half of the knockout draw as England and Ireland.
Tournament Hosts Draw Blockbuster Opener
Tournament hosts the Wallabies find themselves alongside their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Pool A.
The Wallabies will kick off the World Cup in Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a marquee match designed to jump-start the competition.
In other groups, reigning champions the Springboks have been paired with Italy, Georgia and Romania. The French team are grouped with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the United States and Manu Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Los Pumas will take on Fiji, Spain and Canada as the World Cup expands to twenty-four nations from the 20 who took part in France.
This edition will introduce a last-16 round for the first time in Rugby World Cup existence.
While the victor of Pool F may be kept apart from some of the game's biggest beasts initially, 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 pool stages.
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
