The English side and their Welsh counterparts have been drawn in an identical pool for the 2027 RWC, promising a highly-anticipated early encounter in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Group F by Tonga and Zimbabwe.
This pairing mirrors their memorable clash in the group phase of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at Twickenham contributed to the English team's surprise group stage elimination.
Key Pool Pairings
The Irish and Scotland have likewise been drawn in a pool together, replicating the scenario from the France 2023 tournament. In that tournament, Ireland secured a convincing win, with their opponents failing to advance to the knockout stages.
Uruguay and Portugal, who each impressed as surprise packages in France, round out that same group.
Notably, the winners of both Pool D and Pool F are kept apart from defending champions and top-ranked the Springboks until the final, assuming the Springboks win their own group.
Knockout Implications
Should the pools play out in line with the current world rankings, further top favourites like New Zealand and Les Bleus would remain separated from both the English and the Irish until the championship decider.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the other highly-seeded nation on that half of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Face Blockbuster Fixture
Hosts the Wallabies find themselves alongside their great rivals and three-time winners the All Blacks in Pool A.
The Wallabies will kick off the World Cup in the city of Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a marquee fixture aimed at jump-start the event.
Elsewhere, holders South Africa have drawn the Azzurri, the Lelos 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 the Flying Fijians, Spain and Canada as the World Cup expands to 24 teams from the twenty who took part in 2023.
This edition will feature a last-16 round for the very first time in the competition's history.
Although the winner of Pool F may be kept apart from some of the game's heavyweights early on, they will meet the runner-up from Group B – most likely Italy – in the first knockout round.
A total of four of the other six group winners will play 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
