🔗 Share this article The English and Wales Placed in the Same Group for RWC 2027 in Australia The pool stage draw was conducted by sporting legends including former All Black Dan Carter. England together with their Welsh counterparts have been drawn in an identical group for the World Cup in 2027, setting up a major early encounter in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Pool F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and the Zimbabwean Sables. This pairing recalls their memorable meeting in the pool stages of the 2015 tournament, where Wales' victory at Twickenham played a part in the English team's surprise group stage elimination. Key Pool Draws Ireland and Scotland have likewise been drawn in a pool together, just as the situation from the 2023 edition. On that occasion, Ireland secured a 36-14 victory, with their opponents failing to progress to the knockout stages. Los Teros and Portugal, both impressed as underdogs in the last World Cup, round out that Pool D. Notably, the victors of these two groups cannot meet holders and world number one South Africa until the final, presuming the South Africans win their own group. Knockout Ramifications Should the groups conclude in line with the current global standings, further top favourites like New Zealand and France would also be kept apart from the likes of England and Ireland until the championship decider. In that scenario, Argentina would be the other highly-seeded nation on that side of the elimination bracket as England and Ireland. Tournament Hosts Face Major Opener Tournament hosts Australia have been drawn alongside their great rivals and triple champions New Zealand in Group A. Australia will kick off the World Cup in the city of Perth on 1 October 2027 in a marquee fixture aimed at launch the competition. Elsewhere, holders the Springboks have been paired with Italy, Georgia and Romania. France are grouped with Japan, 2031 hosts the United States and Samoa. Expanded Tournament for 2027 Los Pumas will take on Fiji, Los Leones and Canada as the tournament expands to twenty-four nations from the twenty who competed in 2023. This edition will feature a last-16 stage for the first time in the competition's existence. Although the winner of Pool F may be kept apart from some of the game's biggest beasts initially, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – most likely Italy – in the first knockout round. A total of four of the remaining six pool winners will play a third-placed side from the pool stages. 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