England and their Welsh counterparts have been drawn in an identical pool for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, promising a highly-anticipated pool stage clash in the tournament Down Under. Completing the group in Pool F by Tonga and Zimbabwe.
This draw recalls their infamous meeting in the group phase of the 2015 World Cup, where a Welsh win at England's home ground played a part in the English team's surprise early exit.
Other Notable Pool Pairings
The Irish alongside the Scots have likewise been drawn in a pool together, replicating the situation from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, they claimed a 36-14 victory, with their opponents failing to advance to the knockout stages.
Uruguay and Os Lobos, both impressed as underdogs in France, round out that Pool D.
Significantly, the winners of these two groups cannot meet holders and top-ranked the Springboks before the final, presuming the South Africans win their own group.
Knockout Ramifications
Should the groups conclude according to the current world rankings, other leading contenders like the All Blacks and France would also be kept apart from the likes of the English and Ireland until the final.
Under those circumstances, Los Pumas would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on that half of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Draw Blockbuster Fixture
Tournament hosts Australia have been drawn alongside their great rivals and triple champions New Zealand in Group A.
Australia will open the tournament in Perth on 1 October 2027 in a marquee match aimed at jump-start the competition.
Elsewhere, reigning champions South Africa have drawn Italy, the Lelos and Romania. The French team are in a pool with Japan, future hosts the United States and Manu Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Los Pumas will face the Flying Fijians, Los Leones and Canada as the tournament grows to 24 teams from the twenty who took part in 2023.
The 2027 tournament will feature a last-16 round for the first time in the competition's history.
While the winner of Pool F may be kept apart from some of the rugby's heavyweights early on, they will meet the second-placed team from Group B – most likely the Italians – in the last 16.
A total of four of the remaining six pool 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
