The English side and their Welsh counterparts will face off in the same group for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, setting up a major pool stage encounter in Australia. They are joined in Group F by Tonga and the Zimbabwean Sables.
This draw echoes their famous clash in the pool stages of the 2015 tournament, where a Welsh win at England's home ground contributed to the hosts' surprise group stage elimination.
Other Notable Group Draws
Ireland alongside the Scots have likewise been drawn in a pool together, replicating the situation from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, Ireland claimed a 36-14 win, with Scotland failing to progress to the knockout stages.
Los Teros and Os Lobos, who each made a strong impression as underdogs in France, round out that same group.
Significantly, the winners of both Pool D and Pool F are kept apart from defending champions and top-ranked the Springboks until the showpiece match, assuming the Springboks top their own group.
Tournament Implications
Should the pools conclude in line with the current world rankings, further leading contenders like the All Blacks and France would also be kept apart from both the English and Ireland all the way to the championship decider.
Under those circumstances, Los Pumas would be the other highly-seeded nation on the same half of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Face Blockbuster Fixture
Tournament hosts Australia have been drawn alongside their trans-Tasman rivals and triple champions the All Blacks in Group A.
The Wallabies will kick off the tournament in Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster fixture designed to jump-start the event.
In other groups, holders South Africa have been paired with the Azzurri, Georgia and Romania. The French team are grouped with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the USA and Manu Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Los Pumas will take on Fiji, Spain and the Canadian team as the tournament grows to twenty-four nations from the twenty who competed in 2023.
This edition will feature a round of 16 stage for the very first time in Rugby World Cup existence.
While the winner of Pool F may avoid some of the rugby's biggest beasts initially, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – probably Italy – in the last 16.
A total of four of the other six pool winners will play a third-placed side 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
