England together with Wales have been drawn in an identical pool for the World Cup in 2027, promising a major early clash in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Pool F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This pairing recalls their famous clash in the group phase of the 2015 tournament, where a Welsh win at Twickenham contributed to the English team's surprise group stage elimination.
Other Notable Pool Draws
The Irish and the Scots also share a pool together, replicating the situation from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, they claimed a 36-14 win, with their opponents failing to advance to the quarter-finals.
Uruguay and Portugal, both impressed as surprise packages in France, round out that Pool D.
Notably, the winners of these two groups are kept apart from defending champions and top-ranked South Africa until the showpiece match, presuming the South Africans win their own group.
Tournament Ramifications
Should the groups conclude according to the current global standings, other top favourites like New Zealand and France would remain separated from both England and the Irish until the championship decider.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on the same side of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Tournament Hosts Draw Blockbuster Opener
Hosts the Wallabies find themselves alongside their great rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Group A.
Australia will open the tournament in the city of Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster fixture aimed at jump-start the competition.
Elsewhere, reigning champions South Africa have drawn the Azzurri, the Lelos and Romania. The French team are in a pool with the Brave Blossoms, future hosts the United States and Manu Samoa.
Larger Tournament for 2027
Los Pumas will take on Fiji, Los Leones and Canada as the World Cup grows 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 Rugby World Cup history.
While the winner of Pool F may be kept apart from some of the rugby's biggest beasts early on, they will have to face the runner-up from Group B – probably the Italians – in the first knockout round.
Four of the remaining six group winners will play a team that finished third 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
