Springboks and All Blacks on quarter-final collision course after 2027 World Cup draw
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SYDNEY – If South Africa are to claim a third straight Rugby World Cup and fifth in total, they will likely need to get through a blockbuster quarter-final against second-ranked New Zealand after the draw for the expanded 24-team tournament took place on Dec 3.
The new format robbed the draw of much of its pool-stage jeopardy and there will be few big early clashes, barring hosts Australia taking on the All Blacks in a probable tournament opener – the first meeting between the neighbours in the pool stage.
However, with the introduction of the new round of 16, it means that pool winners can face each other in the quarter-finals for the first time.
The Springboks will meet Italy, Georgia and Romania in Pool B, while three-time champions New Zealand will play Chile and debutants Hong Kong in addition to the Wallabies in Pool A.
If, as expected, they top those pools and beat third-placed teams from other pools in the last 16, the Southern Hemisphere giants will clash for a spot in the semi-finals in a rematch of the 2023 final
At that tournament, there was widespread criticism of the draw which was made three years out with rankings from the end of the 2019 World Cup and ended up with the world’s top four teams meeting in two quarter-finals.
This time the draw has been made two years ahead, but has been designed so that pool winners who get “easier” round of 16 games then have tougher quarter-finals. If results were to go according to current rankings, the other quarter-finals would feature Australia against England, Ireland against Argentina and France against Fiji.
However, former New Zealand fly-half Dan Carter cautioned against such expectations. “World Cups are different,” he said. “There’s different expectations and pressures. Things happen in World Cups that you can’t even imagine, whether it’s peripheral decisions or cards or injuries, you just don’t know.”
Australia were offered a relatively smooth path to the business end of the tournament despite failing to get into the top six seeds after winning only five of 15 Tests in 2025.
The format, changed for the first time since Australia last hosted the tournament in 2003, allows four best third-placed teams from the six pools to progress to the round of 16.
That not only significantly decreases the chances of Australia repeating their humiliating pool-stage exit in the 2023 edition, but also means that if they finish second in the pool, they would play the second-placed team in Pool E in their first knockout match.
If the current rankings hold, that would mean a clash with Eddie Jones’ Japan before a quarter-final against England.
Australia coach Joe Schmidt, who will hand over to Les Kiss in July 2026, also warned against looking too far ahead in the tournament.
“You just take nothing for granted, if you start plotting a pathway through, that pathway could change completely because somebody upsets someone,” he said.
“I don’t think you can afford to get too predictive, albeit that you have a look.”
His team could be involved in an eye-catching tournament opener against the All Blacks.
Wallabies captain Harry Wilson said: “As an Australian, you always love to verse (take on) New Zealand, and in the opening match of a World Cup, it doesn’t get much better than that.”
In-form England, who became the first and still only Northern Hemisphere team to win the World Cup in 2003, were drawn into Pool F along with Wales, Tonga and Zimbabwe and have a likely last-16 clash with Italy or Georgia – two teams who they have never lost to.
Ireland will face familiar foes in Scotland – who they have beaten 11 times in a row – along with Uruguay and Portugal in Pool D, with their hopes of finally breaking their quarter-final curse facing an arguably stiff challenge in the form of Argentina in the last eight.
The Pumas will play Fiji, Spain and Canada in Pool C.
Three-time finalists France have a dream draw. They will take on the United States, Samoa and Japan in Pool E followed by a potentially winnable last-16 clash against Scotland. If all goes well, the French could then take on Fiji in the quarter-finals, before a semi-final against New Zealand or South Africa awaits.
The quadrennial tournament will take place across seven cities in Australia from Oct 1 to Nov 13 in 2027. REUTERS
