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Rugby World Cup 2023 draw, pools, qualification, fixtures

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The 2019 World Cup winners. (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)

The 2023 Rugby World Cup will be held in France in nine different host cities.

Australia were drawn alongside Wales and Fiji for the third time in as many tournaments, while Pool A will feature two of the favourites in hosts France and perennial contenders New Zealand. Italy have also been cast into Pool A.

Defending champions South Africa are in Pool B with Ireland and Scotland, and England join Argentina and Japan in Pool D.

Pool A Pool B Pool C Pool D
New Zealand South Africa Wales England
France Ireland Australia Japan
Italy Scotland Fiji Argentina
Uruguay Tonga Georgia Samoa
Namibia Romania Portugal Chile

Qualification

The top 12 sides automatically qualified for the 2023 World Cup as a result of finishing in the top three in their groups in the 2019 tournament. They were split into three bands based on their rankings as of January 1, 2020, to be distributed evenly across the pools in 2023:

Band 1: New Zealand, England, Australia and Ireland
Band 2: Scotland, France, South Africa and Wales
Band 3: Argentina, Japan, Fiji, Italy

The remaining eight teams were determined through a complex series of qualification matches, which saw Uruguay, Namibia, Tonga, Romania, Georgia, Portugal, Samoa and Chile make it through.

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Full Rugby World Cup fixtures

The fixtures for the 2023 Rugby World Cup has been revealed.

Please note all times will be listed as AEST until the morning of Sunday, October 1 in Australia, when they will revert to AEDT.

PoolDateTimeTeam 1Team 2Venue
ASat Sep 95:00 AMFranceNew ZealandStade de France, Paris
ASat Sep 99:00 PMItalyNamibiaStade Geoffroy Guichard, Saint-Étienne
BSat Sep 911:30 PMIrelandRomaniaStade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux
CSun Sep 102:00 AMAustraliaGeorgiaStade de France, Paris
DSun Sep 105:00 AMEnglandArgentinaStade Vélodrome, Marseille
DSun Sep 109:00 PMJapanChileStadium de Toulouse, Toulouse
BMon Sep 111:45 AMSouth AfricaScotlandStade Vélodrome, Marseille
CMon Sep 115:00 AMWales FijiStade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux
AFri Sep 155:00 AMFranceUruguayStade Pierre Mauroy, Lille
ASat Sep 165:00 AMNew ZealandNamibiaStadium de Toulouse, Toulouse
DSat Sep 1611:00 PMSamoaChileStade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux
CSun Sep 171:45 AMWalesPortugalStade de Nice, Nice
BSun Sep 175:00 AMIrelandTongaStade de la Beaujoire, Nantes
BSun Sep 1711:00 PMSouth AfricaRomaniaStade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux
CMon Sep 181:45 AMAustraliaFijiStade Geoffroy Guichard, Saint-Étienne
DMon Sep 185:00 AMEnglandJapanStade de Nice, Nice
AThu Sep 211:45 AMItalyUruguayStade de Nice, Nice
AFri Sep 225:00 AMFranceNamibiaStade Vélodrome, Marseille
DSat Sep 231:45 AMArgentinaSamoaStade Geoffroy Guichard, Saint-Étienne
CSat Sep 2310:00 PMGeorgiaPortugalStadium de Toulouse, Toulouse
DSun Sep 241:45 AMEnglandChileStade Pierre Mauroy, Lille
BSun Sep 245:00 AMSouth AfricaIrelandStade de France, Paris
BMon Sep 251:45 AMScotlandTongaStade de Nice, Nice
CMon Sep 255:00 AMWalesAustraliaOL Stadium, Lyon
AThu Sep 281:45 AMUruguayNamibiaOL Stadium, Lyon
DFri Sep 295:00 AMJapanSamoaStadium de Toulouse, Toulouse
ASat Sep 305:00 AMNew ZealandItalyOL Stadium, Lyon
DSat Sep 3011:00 PMArgentinaChileStade de la Beaujoire, Nantes
CSun Oct 11:45 AMFijiGeorgiaStade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux
BSun Oct 16:00 AM (AEDT)ScotlandRomaniaStade Pierre Mauroy, Lille
CMon Oct 22:45 AMAustraliaPortugalStade Geoffroy Guichard, Saint-Étienne
BMon Oct 26:00 AMSouth Africa TongaStade Vélodrome, Marseille
AFri Oct 66:00 AMNew ZealandUruguayOL Stadium, Lyon
ASat Oct 76:00 AMFranceItalyOL Stadium, Lyon
CSun Oct 812:00 AMWalesGeorgiaStade de la Beaujoire, Nantes
DSun Oct 82:45 AMEnglandSamoaStade Pierre Mauroy, Lille
BSun Oct 86:00 AMIrelandScotlandStade de France, Paris
DSun Oct 810:00 PMJapanArgentinaStade de la Beaujoire, Nantes
BMon Oct 92:45 AMTongaRomaniaStade Pierre Mauroy, Lille
CMon Oct 96:00 AMFijiPortugalStadium de Toulouse, Toulouse

World Cup knockout stage

The knockout format will be the same as in previous years, with pool winners facing runners-up in the quarter-finals and not able to face an opponent from their own group until the final.

DateTimeMatchVenue
Sun Oct 152:00 AMQuarter-Final 1: Winner Pool C vs Runner-up Pool DStade Vélodrome, Marseille
Sun Oct 156:00 AMQuarter-Final 2: Winner Pool B vs Runner-up Pool AStade de France, Paris
Mon Oct 162:00 AMQuarter-Final 3: Winner Pool D vs Runner-up Pool CStade Vélodrome, Marseille
Mon Oct 166:00 AMQuarter-Final 4: Winner Pool A vs Runner-up Pool BStade de France, Paris
Sat Oct 216:00 AMSemi-Final 1: QF1 Winner vs QF2 WinnerStade de France, Paris
Sun Oct 226:00 AMSemi-Final 2: QF3 Winner vs QF4 WinnerStade de France, Paris
Sat Oct 286:00 AMBronze Final: SF1 Loser vs SF2 LoserStade de France, Paris
Sun Oct 296:00 AMFinal: SF1 Winner vs SF2 WinnerStade de France, Paris
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Broadcast guide

The 2023 World Cup will be broadcast in Australia by the Nine Network, in conjunction with streaming partner Stan Sport.

However, only Wallabies matches will be shown on free-to-air and Nine’s official streaming platform 9Now, with the rest shown on Stan Sport behind a subscription paywall.

Venues

There are nine venues in France that will play host to World Cup matches in 2023, down from the 12 that were initially announced. Paris’s Stade de France is set to host both the tournament opener and the final.

The complete list of stadiums is as follows:

  • Stade de France, Paris
  • Stade Velodrome, Marseille
  • Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Lyon
  • Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Lille
  • Matmut Atlantique, Bordeaux
  • Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint-Etienne
  • Allianz Riviera, Nice
  • Stade de la Beaujoire, Nantes
  • Stadium Municipal, Toulouse
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