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England together with Wales have been drawn in an identical pool for the World Cup in 2027, setting up a major pool stage clash in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Pool F by Tonga and Zimbabwe.

This draw echoes their memorable clash in the pool stages of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at Twickenham contributed to the hosts' shock early exit.

Key Pool Draws

Ireland and the Scots also share a group once again, replicating the situation from the France 2023 tournament. In that tournament, they claimed a convincing victory, with their opponents unable to progress to the knockout stages.

Uruguay and Os Lobos, both made a strong impression as surprise packages in the last World Cup, complete that Pool D.

Notably, the victors of these two groups cannot meet holders and top-ranked the Springboks before the final, assuming the South Africans top their own group.

Knockout Ramifications

If the groups play out in line with the current world rankings, further leading contenders like New Zealand and Les Bleus would also be kept apart from the likes of the English and Ireland all the way to the championship decider.

Under those circumstances, Los Pumas would be the other highly-seeded nation on the same half of the knockout draw as those northern hemisphere teams.

Tournament Hosts Face Blockbuster Opener

Tournament hosts Australia find themselves together with their great rivals and triple champions the All Blacks in Group A.

Australia will kick off the tournament in Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a blockbuster fixture aimed at jump-start the event.

Elsewhere, reigning champions the Springboks have been paired with Italy, Georgia and Romania. France are grouped with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the United States and Samoa.

Larger Format for 2027

Los Pumas will take on the Flying Fijians, Spain and the Canadian team as the tournament grows to 24 teams from the 20 who competed in France.

The 2027 tournament will introduce a last-16 round for the first time in the competition's history.

While the victor of Pool F may be kept apart from some of the game's heavyweights initially, they will have to face the runner-up from Group B – most likely Italy – in the last 16.

Four of the remaining six group winners will face a third-placed side 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