The English side and their Welsh counterparts will face off in an identical pool for the World Cup in 2027, promising a highly-anticipated early clash in the tournament Down Under. They are joined in Pool F by Tonga and Zimbabwe.
This draw echoes their famous clash in the group phase of the 2015 World Cup, where a Welsh win at England's home ground contributed to the English team's shock early exit.
Other Notable Pool Pairings
The Irish alongside the Scots also share a group once again, just as the situation from the France 2023 tournament. In that tournament, Ireland secured a convincing victory, with Scotland failing to progress to the quarter-finals.
Uruguay and Portugal, who each impressed as surprise packages in the last World Cup, round out that Pool D.
Significantly, the winners of these two groups are kept apart from defending champions and world number one South Africa before the final, assuming the South Africans win their own group.
Knockout Ramifications
Should the groups play out according to the current world rankings, further top favourites like New Zealand and France would remain separated from both England and Ireland all the way to the final.
In that scenario, Los Pumas would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on that side of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Face Blockbuster Fixture
Tournament hosts the Wallabies find themselves alongside their trans-Tasman rivals and triple champions the All Blacks in Pool A.
Australia will open the tournament in the city of Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster match designed to jump-start the competition.
Elsewhere, holders South Africa have been paired with Italy, the Lelos and Romania. France are in a pool with Japan, 2031 hosts the USA and Samoa.
Larger Tournament for 2027
Argentina will face the Flying Fijians, Los Leones and the Canadian team as the tournament expands to twenty-four nations from the twenty who took part in 2023.
The 2027 tournament will feature a last-16 round for the very first time in the competition's history.
While the winner of England and Wales's group may be kept apart from some of the game's biggest beasts initially, they will meet the runner-up from Pool B – probably the Italians – in the last 16.
A total of four of the other six pool winners will face a team that finished third from the initial group phase.
RWC 2027 Draw
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
