England together with Wales have been drawn in an identical pool for the World Cup in 2027, setting up a major early encounter in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Pool F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and Zimbabwe.
This pairing echoes their memorable meeting in the group phase of the 2015 World Cup, where Wales' victory at Twickenham played a part in the hosts' surprise early exit.
Key Pool Draws
The Irish and the Scots also share a pool together, replicating the situation from the France 2023 tournament. On that occasion, Ireland secured a convincing win, with their opponents failing to advance to the quarter-finals.
Los Teros and Os Lobos, who each impressed as underdogs in France, complete that same group.
Notably, the victors of both Pool D and Pool F are kept apart from defending champions and world number one the Springboks until the showpiece match, assuming the South Africans top their own group.
Tournament Ramifications
If the groups conclude according to the current world rankings, further leading contenders like New Zealand and France would also be kept apart from both the English and the Irish until the final.
Under those circumstances, Los Pumas would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on the same half of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Tournament Hosts Draw Major Fixture
Hosts Australia find themselves together with their great rivals and three-time winners the All Blacks in Pool A.
Australia will open the tournament in the city of Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster match aimed at jump-start the competition.
Elsewhere, holders the Springboks have been paired with Italy, Georgia and the Oaks. France are grouped with the Brave Blossoms, future hosts the USA and Samoa.
Larger Tournament for 2027
Los Pumas will face Fiji, Los Leones and Canada as the tournament expands to twenty-four nations from the 20 who took part in France.
This edition will introduce a last-16 round for the first time in the competition's history.
While the victor of England and Wales's group may avoid some of the rugby's biggest beasts early on, they will meet the runner-up from Group B – most likely the Italians – in the last 16.
A total of four of the remaining six group winners will play a third-placed side 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
