For six weeks in 2027, Australia will welcome the world to a nationwide festival of rugby, celebrating its rich culture and heritage, and kicking off a new era of rugby that will have a positive impact for Australia, Oceania and the game globally. Seven host cities, confirmed by World Rugby, will host the Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 from 1 October to 13 November, 2027.
2025 Qualifiers
This year, 2025, teams worldwide will compete in a series of regional qualifiers, each striving to secure one of the 12 available places. In Europe the qualifiers kicked- off yesterday with the launch of the "Journey to Australia 2027”.
For the Pacific, in August-September 2025 the best three teams of the Pacific Nations Cup 2025, other than already-qualified Fiji and Japan, will punch their tickets to RWC 2027. The sixth-placed team will join the South America/Pacific Play-off. The nations involved are Canada, Fiji, Japan, Samoa, Tonga, USA.
Seven host cities
The host cities are are Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Newcastle, Perth, Sydney and Townsville.
World Rugby Chair, Brett Robinson said: “We are delighted to reach another significant milestone on our journey to Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027. The selection of these incredible host cities reflects our commitment to bring Rugby World Cup to as many Australians as possible and maximise the tournament’s positive impact and sporting legacy in all host communities. Australia’s iconic cities and rich culture will create an extraordinary atmosphere for fans and players alike, uniting an entire nation for six unforgettable weeks. We look forward to working with host cities to make this tournament one for the ages.”
Rugby Australia Chief Executive Phil Waugh said: “Rugby World Cup is among the planet’s biggest sporting events and Australia is incredibly excited to welcome the world to the 2027 edition. Australia has a rich history of hosting major tournaments – indeed, we co-hosted the first ever Rugby World Cup almost 40 years ago – and I have no doubt this event will captivate and enthral the hundreds of thousands attending in-stadium and the hundreds of millions viewing around the world.
World Rugby announced that Perth (Boorloo) will play host to the anticipated opening match and treat fans to four additional pool matches and two round of 16 matches. Both Newcastle (Awabakal-Worimi) and Townsville (Gurambilbarra) will host four pool matches while Adelaide (Tarntanya) will be hosting five pool matches across the first phase of the tournament.
Melbourne (Narrm) will hold a total of nine matches, including seven pool matches and two of the newly introduced round of 16 matches. On the Australian east coast, Brisbane (Meeanjin) will stage six pool matches, two round of 16 matches and two quarter-finals making it one of the core Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 destinations.
Finally, Sydney (Gadigal) will host five pool matches and eight knockout matches, including the semi-finals and prestigious Rugby World Cup final that will see the new champions crowned. The full inventory of host venues and the location of where the host nation Australia will play in the pool phase will be confirmed later in 2025.
The tournament is projected to generate AUS$1.3bn in direct visitor expenditure from more than 250,000 international visitors, while inspiring a nation to embrace rugby, aiming for 200,000 participants by 2029, said World Rugby.
Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 is rugby union’s pinnacle event contested every four years by the world’s best nations. World Rugby said that all revenue generated by Men’s RWC 2027 will be reinvested in the sport, supporting World Rugby’s global growth ambition, its 133 member unions and six regional associations.
Details will be posted at rugbyworldcup.com/2027
