England together with Wales have been drawn in an identical pool for the World Cup in 2027, promising a major pool stage encounter in Australia. Completing the group in Group F by Tonga and Zimbabwe.
This pairing mirrors their infamous clash in the group phase of the 2015 tournament, where a Welsh win at England's home ground contributed to the English team's shock early exit.
Key Pool Pairings
Ireland and the Scots have likewise been drawn in a group once again, just as the scenario from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, Ireland claimed a convincing victory, with their opponents unable to advance to the knockout stages.
Los Teros and Portugal, both made a strong impression as underdogs in France, round out that same group.
Significantly, the winners of these two groups cannot meet defending champions and world number one the Springboks until the final, presuming the South Africans top their own group.
Knockout Ramifications
Should the groups conclude in line with the current world rankings, further top favourites like the All Blacks and France would remain separated from the likes of the English and the Irish all the way to the final.
Under those circumstances, Argentina would be the other top-ranked nation on the same side of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Tournament Hosts Face Major Opener
Tournament hosts the Wallabies have been drawn together with their trans-Tasman rivals and triple champions the All Blacks in Pool A.
The Wallabies will open the World Cup in Perth on 1 October 2027 in a marquee match aimed at jump-start the competition.
In other groups, reigning champions the Springboks have been paired with the Azzurri, the Lelos and Romania. The French team are in a pool with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the United States and Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Los Pumas will take on the Flying Fijians, Los Leones and the Canadian team as the tournament expands to twenty-four nations from the twenty who competed in France.
The 2027 tournament will feature a round of 16 round for the very first time in the competition's history.
Although the winner of England and Wales's group may be kept apart from some of the game's biggest beasts initially, they will meet the second-placed team from Pool B – most likely Italy – in the last 16.
Four of the remaining six pool winners will play a team that finished third 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
