England and their Welsh counterparts have been drawn in an identical pool for the World Cup in 2027, setting up a major pool stage encounter in Australia. They are joined in Group F by Tonga and Zimbabwe.
This pairing echoes their famous clash in the pool stages of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at England's home ground contributed to the hosts' shock group stage elimination.
Key Pool Pairings
Ireland and the Scots also share a group together, just as the situation from the France 2023 tournament. In that tournament, they secured a convincing victory, with their opponents failing to advance to the knockout stages.
Los Teros and Portugal, who each impressed as surprise packages in France, complete that same group.
Notably, the victors of these two groups are kept apart from defending champions and top-ranked South Africa until the final, assuming the South Africans win their assigned pool.
Tournament Ramifications
Should the groups conclude according to the current world rankings, further leading contenders like the All Blacks and France would also be kept apart from the likes of England and Ireland until the final.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on the same side of the knockout draw as those northern hemisphere teams.
Tournament Hosts Draw Major Opener
Tournament hosts the Wallabies have been drawn together with their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Pool A.
The Wallabies will open the World Cup in the city of Perth on 1 October 2027 in a marquee match aimed at jump-start the event.
Elsewhere, reigning champions South Africa have been paired with Italy, the Lelos and Romania. The French team are in a pool with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the USA and Samoa.
Expanded Format for 2027
Argentina will face the Flying Fijians, Spain and the Canadian team as the tournament grows to 24 teams from the 20 who competed in 2023.
This edition will feature a round of 16 stage for the first time in Rugby World Cup existence.
While the victor of England and Wales's group may avoid some of the game's heavyweights initially, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – probably Italy – in the first knockout round.
A total of four of the other six group winners will face a team that finished third from the initial group phase.
RWC 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
