England and Wales in same 2027 World Cup group
In the pool stages of the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia, England and Wales have been paired together, with Tonga and minnows Zimbabwe rounding out Pool F. The two teams appeared on the same stage in the 2015 tournament, with Wales' victory at Twickenham contributing to England's early exit. Both Ireland and Scotland now share a pool, as they did in France 2023, where Ireland won 36-14 and Scotland failed to progress to the knockout stages. Both Uruguay and Portugal, who both impressed as underdogs in France, are also in Pool D. The winners of Pool D or Pool F will meet holders and top-ranked South Africa until the final, presuming that the Springboks lead their own league.
According to the world rankings, if the pools are competitive, New Zealand and France, the leading candidates for the trophy, will be kept apart from England and Ireland until the final. Argentina will be the other top-ranked nation on England and Ireland's side of the knockout draw in that hypothetical scenario. Despite their recent poor run of form, with just two victories in 22 Tests over the past two years, Wales has a good chance of progressing as the first-ranked team in band three of the draw's youngest group, and Zimbabwe, which is also in their group, is hosting the tournament for the first time since 1991. The runners-up of Pool F will face Argentina, Fiji, Canada, and Spain in a last-16 knockout tie against the runners-down of Pool C, which includes Argentina, New Zealand, If Scotland came in second place in their pool, a match against France would most likely be their reward.
In Pool A, Hosts Australia has been drawn together with trans-Tasman rivals and three-time champions the All Blacks. The Wallabies will begin the tournament in Perth on October 1st 2027, with the full lineup set to be revealed in February. South Africa's holders include Italy, Georgia, and Romania in their pool, while France is divided with Japan, 2031 hosts the United States and Samoa. The tournament has expanded to 24 teams from the 2023-2023 teams that competed in France, with a last-16 knockout round included for the first time. Although the winner of Pool F, which includes England and Wales, may be kept isolated from some of the Test game's greatest beasts, they will face Pool B - most likely Italy - in the last 16. Four of the other six pool champions will compete on a third-placed side from the pool stages.
