England and Wales will face off in the same pool for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, promising a major pool stage encounter in Australia. They are joined in Pool F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This draw echoes their famous meeting in the pool stages of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at Twickenham contributed to the English team's surprise group stage elimination.
Key Pool Pairings
Ireland and Scotland also share a group once again, just as the scenario from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, Ireland claimed a convincing win, with their opponents failing to advance to the knockout stages.
Los Teros and Portugal, both impressed as underdogs in France, complete that same group.
Significantly, the victors of these two groups are kept apart from holders and top-ranked the Springboks until the final, assuming the Springboks win their own group.
Knockout Implications
If the groups play out according to the current world rankings, further top favourites like the All Blacks and Les Bleus would remain separated from the likes of the English and Ireland until the championship decider.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the other highly-seeded nation on the same side of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Tournament Hosts Face Major Fixture
Hosts Australia have been drawn together with their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Pool A.
Australia will open the tournament in the city of Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a blockbuster fixture designed to launch the event.
Elsewhere, holders the Springboks have been paired with the Azzurri, Georgia and the Oaks. France are grouped with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the United States and Samoa.
Larger Tournament for 2027
Argentina will face Fiji, Los Leones and the Canadian team as the tournament grows to twenty-four nations from the 20 who competed in France.
This edition will introduce a last-16 stage for the very first time in Rugby World Cup existence.
While the winner of England and Wales's group may avoid some of the rugby's biggest beasts early on, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – probably Italy – in the first knockout round.
A total of four of the remaining six group winners will face a third-placed side from the pool stages.
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
