England together with their Welsh counterparts have been drawn in an identical pool for the 2027 RWC, setting up a major pool stage encounter in the tournament Down Under. Completing the group in Pool F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This pairing echoes their famous meeting in the pool stages of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at Twickenham played a part in the hosts' shock group stage elimination.
Other Notable Group Draws
The Irish alongside Scotland also share a group once again, just as the situation from the France 2023 tournament. In that tournament, Ireland claimed a convincing win, with Scotland failing to progress to the knockout stages.
Los Teros and Portugal, both impressed as surprise packages in the last World Cup, round out that Pool D.
Significantly, the winners of both Pool D and Pool F are kept apart from holders and top-ranked South Africa until the showpiece match, assuming the South Africans win their own group.
Tournament Implications
Should the groups play out in line with the current global standings, further top favourites like the All Blacks and Les Bleus would remain separated from the likes of the English and Ireland all the way to the final.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the remaining top-ranked nation on the same side of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Hosts Draw Major Opener
Hosts the Wallabies find themselves alongside their great 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 fixture aimed at jump-start the event.
Elsewhere, holders South Africa have been paired with Italy, Georgia and Romania. France are grouped with the Brave Blossoms, future hosts the United States and Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Los Pumas will face Fiji, Los Leones and Canada as the World Cup grows to twenty-four nations from the twenty who competed in 2023.
This edition will feature a round of 16 stage for the very first time in Rugby World Cup history.
While the victor of Pool F may avoid some of the rugby's biggest beasts 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 face a team that finished third from the initial group phase.
Rugby World Cup 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
