The English side together with their Welsh counterparts will face off in an identical pool for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, promising a major early encounter in Australia. They are joined in Pool F by the Tongan Ikale Tahi and Zimbabwe.
This pairing recalls their infamous clash in the pool stages of the 2015 World Cup, where a Welsh win at Twickenham contributed to the hosts' surprise group stage elimination.
Key Group Pairings
The Irish alongside Scotland have likewise been drawn in a pool once again, just as the scenario from the France 2023 tournament. On that occasion, Ireland secured a 36-14 victory, with their opponents failing to progress to the quarter-finals.
Uruguay and Os Lobos, who each made a strong impression as surprise packages in France, complete that Pool D.
Significantly, the victors of both Pool D and Pool F cannot meet holders and world number one the Springboks before the showpiece match, assuming the South Africans top their own group.
Knockout Ramifications
Should the pools conclude in line with the current world rankings, other leading contenders like New Zealand and Les Bleus would also be kept apart from both the English and Ireland until the final.
In that scenario, Argentina would be the remaining highly-seeded nation on the same side of the elimination bracket as those northern hemisphere teams.
Hosts Face Blockbuster Opener
Hosts the Wallabies have been drawn alongside their trans-Tasman rivals and three-time winners New Zealand in Pool A.
The Wallabies will open the World Cup in Perth on 1 October 2027 in a blockbuster fixture aimed at jump-start the competition.
In other groups, holders the Springboks have been paired with the Azzurri, the Lelos and Romania. The French team are grouped with Japan, 2031 hosts the USA and Samoa.
Expanded Tournament for 2027
Los Pumas will take on Fiji, Los Leones and the Canadian team as the tournament expands to 24 teams from the twenty who took part in France.
This edition will introduce a round of 16 round for the first time in Rugby World Cup history.
Although the victor of England and Wales's group may avoid some of the game's heavyweights initially, they will have to face the second-placed team from Pool B – most likely 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
