🔗 Share this article England and Wales Drawn in the Same Group for 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia The pool stage draw was conducted by sporting legends such as two-time World Cup winner Dan Carter. The English side and Wales will face off in an identical group for the 2027 RWC, promising a major early encounter in Australia. They are joined in Pool F by Tonga and Zimbabwe. This pairing recalls their infamous meeting in the group phase of the 2015 World Cup, where a Welsh win at Twickenham contributed to the English team's surprise early exit. Key Group Draws The Irish and Scotland have likewise been drawn in a group once again, replicating the scenario from the 2023 edition. On that occasion, they claimed a 36-14 win, with their opponents failing to progress to the quarter-finals. Los Teros and Os Lobos, both made a strong impression as surprise packages in France, round out that same group. Notably, the victors of these two groups cannot meet defending champions and world number one the Springboks until the final, presuming the Springboks win their own group. Knockout Ramifications If the pools play out according to the current world rankings, further leading contenders like the All Blacks and Les Bleus would also be kept apart from both England and Ireland all the way to the final. In that scenario, Los Pumas would be the other highly-seeded nation on that half of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams. Tournament Hosts Draw Major Opener Hosts Australia have been drawn alongside their great rivals and triple champions 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 fixture aimed at jump-start the event. Elsewhere, reigning champions South Africa have been paired with the Azzurri, the Lelos and Romania. The French team are in a pool with the Brave Blossoms, 2031 hosts the USA and Samoa. Expanded Tournament for 2027 Argentina will face Fiji, Spain and Canada as the tournament grows to 24 teams from the twenty who competed in France. This edition will feature a last-16 stage for the first time in Rugby World Cup existence. While the victor of Pool F may avoid some of the game's heavyweights early on, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – probably the Italians – in the last 16. Four of the other six group winners will face 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