England and Wales find themselves placed in an identical group for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, setting up a major early encounter in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Group F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and Zimbabwe.
This pairing echoes their memorable meeting in the pool stages of the 2015 World Cup, where a Welsh win at England's home ground contributed to the hosts' surprise early exit.
Key Group Pairings
The Irish and the Scots also share a group together, just as the scenario from the 2023 edition. On that occasion, they secured a 36-14 victory, with their opponents unable to advance to the quarter-finals.
Uruguay and Os Lobos, both made a strong impression as surprise packages in the last World Cup, complete that same group.
Significantly, the winners of these two groups cannot meet holders and top-ranked the Springboks before the final, presuming the South Africans top their assigned pool.
Knockout Implications
If the pools play out in line with the current global standings, other leading contenders like the All Blacks and Les Bleus would remain separated from both England and Ireland all the way to the final.
In that scenario, Los Pumas would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on that half of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Hosts Face Blockbuster Opener
Hosts Australia find themselves together with their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Pool A.
The Wallabies will kick off the tournament in Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster match aimed at jump-start the competition.
In other groups, holders the Springboks have been paired with Italy, the Lelos and Romania. The French team are in a pool with the Brave Blossoms, future hosts the USA and Manu Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Argentina will take on Fiji, Spain and Canada as the World Cup expands to 24 teams from the 20 who took part in 2023.
This edition will introduce a last-16 round for the very first time in the competition's existence.
While the victor of England and Wales's group may be kept apart from some of the game's heavyweights early on, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – most likely the Italians – in the first knockout round.
A total of four of the remaining six group winners will face a third-placed side from the pool stages.
Rugby World Cup 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
