England together with Wales have been drawn in an identical pool for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, promising a highly-anticipated pool stage encounter in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Group F by Tonga and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This draw mirrors their famous clash in the pool stages of the 2015 World Cup, where a Welsh win at Twickenham contributed to the English team's shock early exit.
Key Group Pairings
The Irish and the Scots have likewise been drawn in a group together, just as the situation from the France 2023 tournament. On that occasion, Ireland claimed a convincing win, with Scotland unable to advance to the quarter-finals.
Los Teros and Portugal, who each made a strong impression as underdogs in the last World Cup, complete that same group.
Significantly, the winners of both Pool D and Pool F cannot meet defending champions and top-ranked South Africa until the showpiece match, presuming the Springboks win their assigned pool.
Knockout Ramifications
Should the pools conclude according to the current global standings, other leading contenders like the All Blacks and Les Bleus would also be kept apart from the likes of the English and Ireland until the championship decider.
Under those circumstances, Argentina would be the remaining top-ranked nation on the same half of the knockout draw as England and Ireland.
Hosts Draw Major Opener
Tournament hosts the Wallabies have been drawn together with their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners the All Blacks in Group A.
Australia will open the tournament in the city of Perth on 1 October 2027 in a marquee fixture designed to jump-start the competition.
In other groups, holders South Africa have drawn Italy, the Lelos and Romania. The French team are grouped with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the United States and Manu Samoa.
Larger Tournament for 2027
Los Pumas will take on Fiji, Los Leones and Canada as the World Cup expands to twenty-four nations from the 20 who competed in 2023.
This edition will introduce a round of 16 round for the very first time in Rugby World Cup existence.
While the winner of Pool F may be kept apart from some of the rugby's biggest beasts initially, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – probably Italy – in the last 16.
Four of the other six pool winners will play a third-placed side from the pool stages.
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
