The English side together with Wales have been drawn in the same pool for the World Cup in 2027, setting up a major pool stage clash in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Pool F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and Zimbabwe.
This pairing echoes their famous meeting in the pool stages of the 2015 World Cup, where Wales' victory at Twickenham played a part in the hosts' shock early exit.
Key Pool Draws
Ireland alongside Scotland also share a group once again, replicating the situation from the France 2023 tournament. On that occasion, Ireland secured a 36-14 win, with their opponents failing to progress to the knockout stages.
Los Teros and Portugal, who each made a strong impression as underdogs in France, round out that same group.
Notably, the winners of both Pool D and Pool F are kept apart from defending champions and top-ranked the Springboks until the final, assuming the South Africans top their own group.
Knockout Ramifications
Should the pools play out in line with the current global standings, further leading contenders like New Zealand and Les Bleus would remain separated from the likes of the English and the Irish all the way to the championship decider.
Under those circumstances, Argentina would be the other highly-seeded nation on the same half of the knockout draw as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Face Blockbuster Opener
Tournament hosts the Wallabies have been drawn together with their trans-Tasman rivals and triple champions New Zealand in Group A.
The Wallabies will kick off the World Cup in the city of Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a blockbuster match aimed at jump-start the competition.
Elsewhere, reigning champions South Africa have drawn the Azzurri, the Lelos and Romania. The French team are in a pool with Japan, 2031 hosts the USA and Manu Samoa.
Expanded Tournament for 2027
Argentina will take on Fiji, Spain and the Canadian team as the World Cup expands to 24 teams from the twenty who competed in France.
The 2027 tournament will feature a round of 16 stage for the very first time in Rugby World Cup existence.
While the victor of Pool F may avoid some of the rugby's heavyweights initially, they will meet the second-placed team from Pool B – probably the Italians – in the first knockout round.
A total of four of the remaining six pool winners will face 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
