England together with their Welsh counterparts find themselves placed in the same group for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, promising a highly-anticipated early encounter in Australia. Completing the group in Group F by Tonga and Zimbabwe.
This draw recalls their memorable meeting in the pool stages of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at Twickenham contributed to the English team's surprise group stage elimination.
Other Notable Group Draws
Ireland alongside the Scots have likewise been drawn in a group together, just as the scenario from the 2023 edition. On that occasion, they secured a 36-14 win, with Scotland unable to progress to the quarter-finals.
Uruguay and Portugal, both made a strong impression as surprise packages in the last World Cup, round out that same group.
Notably, the victors of both Pool D and Pool F are kept apart from holders and top-ranked the Springboks until the showpiece match, assuming the South Africans win their own group.
Knockout Ramifications
Should the pools conclude in line with the current world rankings, other leading contenders like the All Blacks and Les Bleus would also be kept apart from the likes of the English and the Irish until the championship decider.
In that scenario, Los Pumas would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on that side of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Tournament Hosts Draw Blockbuster Opener
Hosts the Wallabies find themselves together with their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Group A.
The Wallabies will kick off the tournament in Perth on 1 October 2027 in a marquee match designed to jump-start the competition.
In other groups, holders the Springboks have drawn the Azzurri, the Lelos and the Oaks. The French team are in a pool with Japan, future hosts the USA and Samoa.
Expanded Tournament for 2027
Argentina will face the Flying Fijians, Spain and Canada as the tournament grows to 24 teams from the 20 who competed in 2023.
The 2027 tournament will introduce a round of 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 rugby's heavyweights early on, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – most likely Italy – in the last 16.
A total of four of the other six pool winners will face a team that finished third from the pool stages.
RWC 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
