The English side and their Welsh counterparts find themselves placed in the same pool for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, setting up a highly-anticipated early encounter in Australia. They are joined in Group F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and Zimbabwe.
This pairing mirrors their infamous clash in the group phase of the 2015 World Cup, where Wales' victory at Twickenham contributed to the English team's surprise group stage elimination.
Other Notable Pool Pairings
The Irish alongside the Scots have likewise been drawn in a group once again, replicating the scenario from the 2023 edition. In that tournament, Ireland claimed a convincing victory, with Scotland failing to progress to the knockout stages.
Los Teros and Portugal, both made a strong impression as surprise packages in the last World Cup, round out that Pool D.
Notably, the winners of both Pool D and Pool F are kept apart from holders and top-ranked the Springboks before the showpiece match, assuming the Springboks top their assigned pool.
Tournament Ramifications
Should the groups play out according to the current world rankings, other leading contenders like the All Blacks and France would also be kept apart from both England and the Irish all the way to the championship decider.
Under those circumstances, Argentina would be the other highly-seeded nation on the same half of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams.
Tournament Hosts Face Major Fixture
Tournament hosts Australia find themselves together with their great rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Pool A.
Australia will kick off the World Cup in the city of Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster fixture designed to launch the competition.
Elsewhere, holders the Springboks have been paired with Italy, Georgia and Romania. France are grouped with Japan, 2031 hosts the USA and Samoa.
Larger Format for 2027
Los Pumas will face Fiji, Spain and Canada as the tournament expands to twenty-four nations from the twenty who took part in France.
The 2027 tournament will introduce a round of 16 stage for the first time in the competition's history.
While the winner of England and Wales's group may be kept apart from some of the rugby's biggest beasts early on, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – most likely 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
