🔗 Share this article The English and Wales Drawn Together for RWC 2027 in Australia The pool stage draw was conducted by rugby icons such as former All Black Dan Carter. England together with Wales find themselves placed in the same group for the World Cup in 2027, promising a highly-anticipated early encounter in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Group F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and the Zimbabwean Sables. This pairing mirrors their famous meeting in the group phase of the 2015 tournament, where a Welsh win at England's home ground played a part in the hosts' shock group stage elimination. Key Pool Pairings Ireland alongside the Scots have likewise been drawn in a pool together, just as the situation from the France 2023 tournament. On that occasion, they secured a 36-14 victory, with Scotland failing to progress to the knockout stages. Uruguay and Os Lobos, both made a strong impression as surprise packages in the last World Cup, round out that same group. Notably, the victors of both Pool D and Pool F are kept apart from defending champions and world number one the Springboks until the showpiece match, assuming the Springboks top their own group. Knockout Implications Should the groups play out according to the current global standings, other top favourites like the All Blacks and Les Bleus would remain separated from the likes of England and Ireland until the championship decider. In that scenario, Los Pumas would be the other top-ranked nation on the same half of the knockout draw as those northern hemisphere teams. Tournament Hosts Face Major Opener Tournament hosts the Wallabies find themselves together with their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners the All Blacks in Group A. Australia will kick off the World Cup in the city of Perth on October 1st, 2027 in a blockbuster match aimed at launch the competition. In other groups, holders the Springboks have drawn Italy, the Lelos and the Oaks. France are in a pool with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the United States and Manu Samoa. Larger Format for 2027 Argentina will take on the Flying Fijians, Spain and Canada as the World Cup expands to twenty-four nations from the twenty who took part in France. The 2027 tournament will feature a last-16 round for the very first time in the competition's history. While the winner of Pool F may be kept apart from some of the game's biggest beasts early on, they will have to face the second-placed team from Pool B – most likely the Italians – in the first knockout round. A total of four of the remaining six group winners will face a team that finished third from the pool stages. Rugby World Cup 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