🔗 Share this article England along with Welsh Pitted Together for RWC 2027 in Australia The pool stage draw was conducted by sporting icons such as former All Black Dan Carter. England and Wales find themselves placed in the same pool for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, setting up a major pool stage encounter in Australia. Completing the group in Group F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and Zimbabwe. This pairing mirrors their memorable meeting in the group phase of the 2015 World Cup, where a Welsh win at England's home ground contributed to the hosts' surprise early exit. Other Notable Group Pairings Ireland and the Scots have likewise been drawn in a group once again, just as the situation from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, Ireland claimed a convincing win, with their opponents unable to advance to the knockout stages. Uruguay and Os Lobos, who each impressed as underdogs in France, complete that same group. Notably, the winners of these two groups cannot meet defending champions and world number one the Springboks until the showpiece match, presuming the Springboks top their assigned pool. Tournament Ramifications Should the pools play out in line with the current world rankings, further leading contenders like New Zealand and France would also be kept apart from both the English and Ireland all the way to the championship decider. In that scenario, Los Pumas would be the remaining top-ranked nation on the same side of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams. Hosts Face Major Fixture Hosts Australia have been drawn alongside their great rivals and triple champions the All Blacks in Pool A. Australia will open the tournament in Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster fixture designed to jump-start the competition. In other groups, holders South Africa have been paired with Italy, the Lelos and the Oaks. The French team are in a pool with Japan, 2031 hosts the USA and Samoa. Larger Format for 2027 Los Pumas will take on Fiji, Los Leones and the Canadian team as the tournament expands to twenty-four nations from the 20 who competed in France. The 2027 tournament will introduce a last-16 stage 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 heavyweights early on, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – most likely the Italians – in the last 16. Four of the other six pool winners will play a team that finished third from the pool stages. Rugby World Cup 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