England and their Welsh counterparts find themselves placed in the same pool for the 2027 RWC, promising a major early encounter in the tournament Down Under. Completing the group in Group F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and Zimbabwe.
This draw mirrors their memorable clash in the pool stages of the 2015 tournament, where a Welsh win at England's home ground played a part in the hosts' surprise group stage elimination.
Other Notable Pool Pairings
The Irish and Scotland also share a group once again, replicating the situation from the 2023 edition. On that occasion, they claimed a convincing win, with Scotland unable to progress to the quarter-finals.
Uruguay and Portugal, who each made a strong impression as underdogs in the last World Cup, round out that same group.
Notably, the winners of these two groups cannot meet holders and top-ranked South Africa before the final, assuming the Springboks top their own group.
Knockout Implications
If the groups conclude in line with the current global standings, other leading contenders like the All Blacks and France would remain separated from both England and the Irish until the final.
In that scenario, Los Pumas would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on that side of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Tournament Hosts Face Blockbuster Opener
Hosts the Wallabies have been drawn alongside their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Group A.
Australia will kick off the tournament in the city of Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster fixture designed to launch the event.
In other groups, holders South Africa have drawn Italy, the Lelos and Romania. The French team are in a pool with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the USA and Samoa.
Expanded Tournament for 2027
Los Pumas will face Fiji, Los Leones and Canada as the World Cup expands to 24 teams from the twenty who competed in France.
This edition will introduce a round of 16 stage for the very first time in the competition's history.
While the victor of England and Wales's group may be kept apart from some of the game's biggest beasts early on, they will have to face the second-placed team from Pool B – probably Italy – in the last 16.
A total of four of the remaining six pool winners will play a team that finished third from the pool stages.
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
