England together with their Welsh counterparts will face off in an identical pool for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, promising a highly-anticipated pool stage clash in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Pool F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This pairing mirrors their famous meeting in the pool stages of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at Twickenham contributed to the English team's surprise early exit.
Key Group Draws
Ireland alongside Scotland have likewise been drawn in a pool once again, replicating the situation from the 2023 edition. On that occasion, they secured a convincing win, with their opponents failing to advance to the knockout stages.
Uruguay and Os Lobos, both made a strong impression as surprise packages in France, complete that same group.
Notably, the winners of both Pool D and Pool F are kept apart from defending champions and world number one South Africa before the showpiece match, assuming the Springboks top their assigned pool.
Knockout Ramifications
If the pools conclude according to the current world rankings, further leading contenders like New Zealand and France would remain separated from both England and the Irish all the way to the championship decider.
Under those circumstances, Los Pumas would be the other highly-seeded nation on that half of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Hosts Draw Major Fixture
Tournament hosts Australia find themselves alongside their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners the All Blacks in Group A.
The Wallabies will kick off the World Cup in Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster fixture designed to jump-start the event.
In other groups, reigning champions South Africa have been paired with Italy, the Lelos and the Oaks. The French team are grouped with Japan, 2031 hosts the United States and Manu Samoa.
Expanded Format for 2027
Los Pumas will face the Flying Fijians, Los Leones and the Canadian team as the World Cup expands to 24 teams from the 20 who took part in 2023.
The 2027 tournament will feature a last-16 stage for the first time in Rugby World Cup history.
Although the victor of England and Wales's group may avoid some of the game's heavyweights initially, they will meet the runner-up from Group B – probably Italy – in the last 16.
A total of four of the other six group winners will face a third-placed side 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
