England and Wales will face off in the same pool for the World Cup in 2027, setting up a major pool stage encounter in Australia. They are joined in Group F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This pairing mirrors their famous clash in the group phase of the 2015 World Cup, where Wales' victory at Twickenham contributed to the hosts' shock group stage elimination.
Other Notable Group Draws
Ireland alongside Scotland also share a group together, just as the situation from the 2023 edition. On that occasion, they secured a convincing win, with their opponents unable to advance to the quarter-finals.
Los Teros and Portugal, who each made a strong impression as surprise packages in France, complete that same group.
Notably, the winners of both Pool D and Pool F cannot meet defending champions and top-ranked South Africa until the showpiece match, assuming the Springboks top their own group.
Knockout Implications
Should the groups play out in line with the current global standings, further leading contenders like the All Blacks and France would remain separated from the likes of the English and Ireland until the championship decider.
In that scenario, Los Pumas would be the remaining top-ranked nation on the same half of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Face Major Opener
Tournament hosts the Wallabies find themselves alongside their great rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Pool A.
The Wallabies will open the tournament in Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster match aimed at jump-start the competition.
Elsewhere, holders South Africa have drawn the Azzurri, the Lelos and Romania. The French team are grouped with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the United States and Manu Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Los Pumas will take on Fiji, Spain and the Canadian team as the World Cup grows to 24 teams from the 20 who took part in 2023.
The 2027 tournament will feature a round of 16 stage for the very first time in the competition's history.
While the winner of England and Wales's group may avoid some of the game's heavyweights early on, they will meet the runner-up from Group B – probably Italy – in the first knockout round.
A total of four of the remaining six group winners will face a team that finished third from the initial group phase.
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
