England and their Welsh counterparts have been drawn in an identical group for the World Cup in 2027, promising a highly-anticipated early clash in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Pool F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and Zimbabwe.
This pairing echoes their infamous meeting in the pool stages of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at Twickenham contributed to the hosts' shock group stage elimination.
Other Notable Group Draws
Ireland and Scotland also share a pool together, replicating the situation from the France 2023 tournament. In that tournament, Ireland claimed a convincing victory, with their opponents unable to progress to the quarter-finals.
Uruguay and Portugal, who each impressed as underdogs in the last World Cup, complete that same group.
Notably, the victors of both Pool D and Pool F cannot meet defending champions and top-ranked the Springboks before the showpiece match, presuming the Springboks top their own group.
Tournament Ramifications
If the groups conclude according to the current world rankings, further top favourites like the All Blacks and Les Bleus would also be kept apart from both the English and Ireland all the way to the final.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the other highly-seeded nation on the same side of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Hosts Face Blockbuster Fixture
Tournament hosts the Wallabies find themselves together with their great rivals and triple champions New Zealand in Group A.
Australia will kick off the tournament in Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a blockbuster fixture aimed at jump-start the event.
Elsewhere, holders South Africa have drawn Italy, Georgia and the Oaks. The French team are in a pool with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the United States and Manu Samoa.
Expanded Tournament for 2027
Los Pumas will face Fiji, Los Leones and Canada as the World Cup grows to twenty-four nations from the 20 who competed in France.
The 2027 tournament will introduce a last-16 round for the first time in Rugby World Cup history.
Although the victor of England and Wales's group may avoid some of the rugby's heavyweights initially, they will meet the second-placed team from Group B – probably the Italians – in the first knockout round.
A total of four of the remaining six group winners will face a third-placed side 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
