England and Wales will face off in an identical pool for the World Cup in 2027, setting up a major early encounter in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Group F by Tonga and Zimbabwe.
This pairing echoes their memorable meeting in the pool stages of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at England's home ground played a part in the English team's surprise group stage elimination.
Other Notable Group Draws
The Irish alongside the Scots have likewise been drawn in a pool together, replicating the scenario from the 2023 edition. On that occasion, they claimed a convincing victory, with their opponents unable to progress to the quarter-finals.
Los Teros and Os Lobos, both made a strong impression as surprise packages in France, round out that same group.
Notably, the victors of these two groups are kept apart from defending champions and world number one South Africa before the final, presuming the South Africans top their assigned pool.
Knockout Ramifications
If the pools conclude according to the current world rankings, other top favourites like the All Blacks and France would also be kept apart from the likes of the English and Ireland all the way to the championship decider.
Under those circumstances, Los Pumas would be the other highly-seeded nation on the same side of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Draw Blockbuster Opener
Tournament hosts Australia find themselves together with their great rivals and triple champions the All Blacks in Group 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.
Elsewhere, reigning champions the Springboks have been paired with Italy, Georgia and the Oaks. France are in a pool with Japan, future hosts the USA and Manu Samoa.
Larger Tournament for 2027
Argentina will take on Fiji, Spain and the Canadian team as the tournament expands to twenty-four nations from the twenty who took part in France.
The 2027 tournament will introduce a last-16 stage for the very first time in the competition's existence.
While the victor of England and Wales's group may be kept apart from some of the game's heavyweights early on, they will have to face the runner-up from Pool B – most likely the Italians – in the first knockout round.
A total of four of the other six group winners will face a team that finished third 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
