England together with Wales have been drawn in an identical pool for the 2027 RWC, setting up a major pool stage clash in Australia. They are joined in Group F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and Zimbabwe.
This draw echoes their famous clash in the pool stages of the 2015 World Cup, where a Welsh win at Twickenham contributed to the hosts' surprise group stage elimination.
Other Notable Group Pairings
Ireland alongside the Scots also share a pool together, just as the scenario from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, they claimed a 36-14 win, with Scotland unable to progress to the quarter-finals.
Los Teros and Portugal, both made a strong impression as surprise packages in France, round out that Pool D.
Significantly, the victors of these two groups cannot meet holders and world number one South Africa before the showpiece match, assuming the Springboks top their assigned pool.
Tournament Implications
Should the groups play out according to the current world rankings, further top favourites like New Zealand and France would remain separated from the likes of the English and Ireland all the way to the championship decider.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the other highly-seeded nation on that half of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Hosts Draw Major Fixture
Hosts Australia have been drawn alongside their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners the All Blacks in Group A.
The Wallabies will kick off the World Cup in the city of Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster fixture designed to jump-start the event.
Elsewhere, holders South Africa have been paired with the Azzurri, Georgia and Romania. France are grouped with the Brave Blossoms, future hosts the USA and Manu Samoa.
Expanded Format for 2027
Argentina will take on the Flying Fijians, Los Leones and Canada as the World Cup expands to twenty-four nations from the 20 who competed in 2023.
The 2027 tournament will introduce a last-16 stage for the first time in the competition's history.
While the victor of Pool F may avoid some of the game's biggest beasts early on, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – most likely Italy – in the last 16.
Four of the other six group winners will face 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
