England and their Welsh counterparts find themselves placed in the same group for the World Cup in 2027, promising a highly-anticipated pool stage encounter in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Pool F by Tonga and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This pairing echoes their infamous meeting in the group phase of the 2015 World Cup, where a Welsh win at Twickenham contributed to the English team's surprise group stage elimination.
Other Notable Group Pairings
The Irish and the Scots also share a group once again, just as the situation from the France 2023 tournament. In that tournament, Ireland claimed a convincing win, with their opponents unable to progress to the knockout stages.
Los Teros and Os Lobos, who each made a strong impression as surprise packages in the last World Cup, complete that Pool D.
Significantly, the victors of these two groups cannot meet defending champions and world number one South Africa until the showpiece match, assuming the Springboks win their assigned pool.
Knockout Ramifications
If the pools play out according to the current global standings, further leading contenders like the All Blacks and France would remain separated from the likes of England and the Irish until the final.
Under those circumstances, Los Pumas would be the other highly-seeded nation on that half of the knockout draw as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Face Blockbuster Fixture
Tournament hosts the Wallabies have been drawn alongside their great rivals and three-time winners the All Blacks in Pool A.
Australia will kick off the World Cup in Perth on 1 October 2027 in a marquee fixture aimed at jump-start the event.
In other groups, reigning champions the Springboks have been paired with Italy, Georgia and the Oaks. The French team are in a pool with Japan, 2031 hosts the USA and Manu Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Los Pumas will take on the Flying Fijians, Spain and the Canadian team as the tournament expands to twenty-four nations from the twenty who took part in France.
The 2027 tournament will feature a round of 16 round for the very first time in the competition's existence.
While the victor of Pool F may avoid some of the rugby's heavyweights early on, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – probably Italy – in the first knockout round.
Four of the remaining six pool winners will face a team that finished third from the initial group phase.
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
