Ireland have been drawn in Pool D alongside Scotland, Uruguay, and Portugal following the draw in Syndey today.
For the first time, Men’s Rugby World Cup features 24 teams competing across six pools of four in an expanded format designed to break down barriers and make the game more accessible to fans around the world.
As you can see, the teams that finish top of Pools A, B, C, and D will face a third-place team in the round of 16, while the teams that finish top of Pools E and F will face teams that finished second in their pool.
Likewise, some teams that finished second in their pool may face the winners 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 us 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 winners of Pool B if that team wins their round of 16 clash.
On the other hand, the team that wins Pool E will face runners-up rather than a third-place team in the round of 16, but in the quarter-finals would face the winners of a quarter-final between two other runners-up.
So, while the winners of Pool A would face a third-ranked team and then potentially a top-ranked team in their games, the winner of Pool E would face second-ranked teams in both games.
There is therefore no advantage or disadvantage to be gained or lost regardless of your team’s ranking at the end of the pool phase. It will all even out in the end.
RWC 2027 - POOLS
Pool A: New Zealand, Australia, Chile, Hong Kong China 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 In the Round of 16 the winner of Pool D will face the best 3rd placed team from Pool B/E/F while the Runner Up in Pool D is set to face the winner of Pool E. With the pools now confirmed, teams and fans can begin planning their Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 journey. The next major milestone will be the announcement of the match schedule on Tuesday, 3 February 2026. Rugby fans will then have an opportunity to secure seats during an exclusive two-week presale window starting on 18 February 2026 at 12:00 AEDT. Fans must create a ticketing account before 12:00 AEDT (GMT+11) on Tuesday, 17 February 2026 to be eligible to enter the presale. For more news and information, including how to access tickets in the presale and secure your tickets, visit rugbyworldcup.com/2027What is the format?
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 does not 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 phase.Round of 16
In previous formats, the quarter-finalists would just be the winners of each pool against the runners-up of another pool. With six pools feeding 16 spots in the first round of the knockouts, that requires some changes. First, have a look at this graphic which shows the road to the final:
As you can see, the teams that finish top of Pools A, B, C, and D will face a third-place team in the round of 16, while the teams that finish top of Pools E and F will face teams that finished second in their pool.
Likewise, some teams that finished second in their pool may face the winners 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 us 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 winners of Pool B if that team wins their round of 16 clash.
On the other hand, the team that wins Pool E will face runners-up rather than a third-place team in the round of 16, but in the quarter-finals would face the winners of a quarter-final between two other runners-up.
So, while the winners of Pool A would face a third-ranked team and then potentially a top-ranked team in their games, the winner of Pool E would face second-ranked teams in both games.
There is therefore no advantage or disadvantage to be gained or lost regardless of your team’s ranking at the end of the pool phase. It will all even out in the end.