The English side together with Wales have been drawn in the same pool for the World Cup in 2027, setting up a major pool stage encounter in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Group F by Tonga and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This pairing recalls their infamous clash in the pool stages of the 2015 World Cup, where Wales' victory at Twickenham played a part in the English team's surprise early exit.
Other Notable Pool Draws
The Irish and Scotland also share a pool together, replicating the scenario from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, Ireland claimed a 36-14 win, with their opponents failing to progress to the quarter-finals.
Uruguay and Os Lobos, who each made a strong impression as surprise packages in the last World Cup, round out that Pool D.
Notably, the winners of both Pool D and Pool F are kept apart from defending champions and top-ranked the Springboks before the showpiece match, assuming the Springboks win their own group.
Tournament Implications
Should the groups play out in line with the current global standings, other leading contenders like New Zealand and Les Bleus would remain separated from both the English and Ireland until the final.
Under those circumstances, Argentina would be the other highly-seeded nation on that half of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland.
Hosts Face Major Opener
Tournament hosts Australia have been drawn together with their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners the All Blacks in Pool A.
The Wallabies will open the World Cup in Perth on 1 October 2027 in a marquee fixture designed to launch the event.
In other groups, reigning champions the Springboks have drawn Italy, Georgia and Romania. The French team are grouped with Japan, future hosts the United States and Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Argentina will take on the Flying Fijians, Los Leones and Canada as the World Cup expands to 24 teams from the twenty who competed in 2023.
The 2027 tournament will introduce a round of 16 stage for the very first time in the competition's existence.
Although the winner of Pool F may avoid some of the game's biggest beasts early on, they will meet the second-placed team from Group B – most likely the Italians – in the last 16.
Four of the other six pool winners will play 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
