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The Springboks eye a third successive triumph, with 24 teams set to find out their fate for the largest World Cup ever in Australia in 2027
Harry Latham-Coyle,Lawrence OstlereWednesday 03 December 2025 09:08 GMTComments
(Getty Images)The draw for the largest Rugby World Cup in history is set to be made with all 24 qualified nations finding out their fate for the tournament in Australia.
The 2027 edition has been expanded by four teams as rugby’s signature event heads Down Under for the first time since England’s triumph in 2003. Could Steve Borthwick’s side follow in the footsteps of Martin Johnson, Jonny Wilkinson and co.? After an encouraging 2025, they appear to be heading in the right direction though it will take some team to stop South Africa from completing a three-peat if the Springboks continue on their current trajectory.
A 24-team tournament brings a revamped format with six pools of four sides to be drawn, and a round of 16 introduced. With some third-placed sides progressing, a favourable draw could be key to a nation’s chances of going deep in two years’ time.
Follow all of the latest from the 2027 Rugby World Cup draw in Sydney with our live blog below:
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2027 Rugby World Cup draw live
- The draw for the 2027 Rugby World Cup is set to be made from 9am GMT
- Springboks are the defending champions and seeking a third triumph in a row
- Tournament has been expanded to 24 teams, with Hong Kong making their debut
- Springboks lock Eben Etzebeth facing long ban after red card for eye gouge mars record win over Wales
- Argentina demand investigation into ‘bully’ Tom Curry after alleged tunnel shove
Rugby World Cup 2027 draw
Here is how the knockout bracket looks, as the RWC explains:
The teams that finish top of Pool A, B, C and D will face a third-place team in the Round of 16, while the teams that finish top of Pool E and F will face teams that finished second in their pool. Likewise, some teams that finished second in their pool may face the winner of another pool, while some will face the runners-up.
While on the surface that may seem slightly unfair, that imbalance is addressed in the next round. Let's take Pool A and Pool E as an example. The team that wins Pool A will face a third-place team in the Round of 16, but in the quarter-finals could potentially meet the winner of Pool B if that team wins their Round of 16 match.
On the other hand, the team that wins Pool E will face a runner-up rather than a third-place team in the Round of 16, but in the quarter-finals would face the winner of a quarter-final between two other runners-up.
Rugby World Cup 2027 (RWC)Lawrence Ostlere3 December 2025 09:08Rugby World Cup 2027 draw
The draw is nearly upon us! Dan Carter and Tim Horan are in the studio and it looks like they will be our ball-pluckers this morning (or evening, in Australia).
Lawrence Ostlere3 December 2025 09:05Rugby World Cup 2027 draw
Here is the new tournament format, as explained by the Rugby World Cup website:
There will now be six pools with four teams in each. The top two teams from each pool will progress to the Round of 16, while the four best third-place teams will also progress. Those four teams will be determined by competition points firstly, and if that doesn't separate the sides then points difference and try difference will be the next factors used respectively to determine which teams make it out of the pool stage.
Lawrence Ostlere3 December 2025 09:00Rugby World Cup 2027 draw
The draw for the biggest Rugby World Cup in history is about to be made as the 24 qualified nations find out their fate.
The tournament has been expanded by four teams from the 2023 edition as the competition returns to Australia, which will also host the women’s equivalent in 2029, for the first time since England’s triumph in 2003.
Hong Kong make their debut at the World Cup while Zimbabwe make their first appearance since 1991 having come through qualifying to join the defending champion Springboks as the African representatives in the draw.
Ten European nations have qualified, and there was nearly an 11th — Belgium just missed out on a place to Samoa despite a draw with the Pacific Islanders at the final qualification tournament.
Lawrence Ostlere3 December 2025 08:52Rugby World Cup 2027 draw
A reminder of the pots, or bands, for this World Cup. None of the band 1 teams will want to face Australia or Scotland, you’d imagine. And Wales could be a entirely different prospect in 18 months...
- Band 1: South Africa, New Zealand, England, Ireland, France, Argentina
- Band 2: Australia, Fiji, Scotland, Italy, Wales, Japan
- Band 3: Georgia, Uruguay, Spain, USA, Chile, Tonga
- Band 4: Samoa, Portugal, Romania, Hong Kong, Zimbabwe, Canada
Autumn results
It was a brilliant autumn for England and South Africa, who came away with perfect records, while Scotland were left disappointed after squandering a huge lead against Argentina.
Week one
Saturday 1 November
- England 25-7 Australia
- South Africa 61-7 Japan
- Scotland 85-0 USA
- Ireland 13-26 New Zealand
Week two
Saturday 8 November
- Ireland 41-10 Japan
- Scotland 17-25 New Zealand
- England 38-18 Fiji
- Italy 26-19 Australia
- France 17-32 South Africa
Sunday 9 November
- Wales 28-52 Argentina
Week three
Saturday 15 November
- Italy 14-32 South Africa
- England 33-19 New Zealand
- Wales 24-23 Japan
- France 34-21 Fiji
- Ireland 46-19 Australia
Sunday 16 November
- Scotland 24-33 Argentina
Week four
- Wales 26-52 New Zealand
- Ireland 13-24 South Africa
- France 48-33 Australia
- Italy 34-19 Chile
Sunday 23 November
- Scotland 56-0 Tonga
- England 27-23 Argentina
Week five
Saturday 29 November
- Wales 0-73 South Africa
Rugby World Cup 2027 draw
We’re expecting the draw to get going at around 9am GMT. Here is a reminder of all the nations involved:
Automatic qualifiers: South Africa, England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland, Wales, Australia, Fiji, Japan, New Zealand, Argentina.
Continental qualifiers: Zimbabwe, Hong Kong, Georgia, Spain, Romania, Portugal, Tonga, Canada, United States, Uruguay
Play-off/final qualification tournament: Chile, Samoa.
Lawrence Ostlere3 December 2025 08:15Wales and Scotland's best and worst case scenarios from Rugby World Cup 2027 draw
Scotland and Wales face a tricky test as a band two sides, here’s the best and worst case scenarios for them
Worst-case scenario: South Africa, Scotland/Wales, Georgia, Samoa
Best-case scenario: Argentina, Scotland/Wales, Tonga, Canada
Jack Rathborn3 December 2025 07:50England and Ireland's best and worst case scenarios from Rugby World Cup 2027 draw
If we look at the world rankings, Steve Borthwick and Andy Farrell’s sides, given they are in band one, could face:
Worst-case scenario: England/Ireland, Australia, Georgia, Samoa
Best-case scenario: England/Ireland, Japan, Tonga, Canada
England head coach Steve Borthwick (right) sees Elliot Daly (left) as an important player for the 2027 World Cup (Andrew Matthews/PA) (PA Archive)Jack Rathborn3 December 2025 07:40Rugby World Cup 2027 odds: Who is the favourite?
- South Africa 9/4
- New Zealand 10/3
- France 9/2
- England 5/1
- Ireland 13/2
- Australia 15/2
- Argentina 22/1
- Scotland 40/1
- Fiji 50/1
- Wales 66/1
- Italy 150/1
- Japan 250/1
- Samoa 250/1
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