England and their Welsh counterparts find themselves placed in the same group for the World Cup in 2027, setting up a highly-anticipated early encounter in Australia. They are joined in Group F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This draw mirrors their memorable meeting in the group phase of the 2015 tournament, where a Welsh win at Twickenham played a part in the hosts' shock group stage elimination.
Other Notable Pool Pairings
The Irish alongside Scotland have likewise been drawn in a group together, replicating the scenario from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, Ireland claimed a convincing win, with Scotland unable to advance to the knockout stages.
Los Teros and Os Lobos, who each impressed as underdogs in France, complete that Pool D.
Notably, the victors of these two groups cannot meet holders and world number one South Africa before the final, presuming the Springboks win their own group.
Tournament Implications
Should the pools play out in line with the current world rankings, other top favourites like the All Blacks and Les Bleus would also be kept apart from both the English and the Irish all the way to the final.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the other top-ranked nation on the same side of the knockout draw as those northern hemisphere teams.
Tournament Hosts Draw Major Fixture
Tournament hosts Australia find themselves together with their great rivals and triple champions the All Blacks in Pool A.
The Wallabies will kick off the World Cup in Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a blockbuster match aimed at launch the event.
Elsewhere, reigning champions the Springboks have been paired with the Azzurri, the Lelos and the Oaks. The French team are grouped with Japan, 2031 hosts the United States and Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Argentina will face the Flying Fijians, Spain and the Canadian team as the World Cup grows to 24 teams from the twenty who took part in France.
The 2027 tournament will introduce a last-16 stage for the very first time in Rugby World Cup history.
While the victor of Pool F may be kept apart from some of the rugby's heavyweights initially, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – probably the Italians – in the first knockout round.
Four of the other six group 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
