Boks to kick off RWC 2027 campaign in Adelaide

World Rugby
13 hours ago
8 min read

The match schedule and ticket prices for Men’s Rugby World Cup Australia 2027 have been revealed, confirming dates, venues and kick-off times for all 52 tournament matches. Fans and teams can now start planning their Rugby World Cup journey to Australia, with first tickets available from 18 February for registered fans in the exclusive Presale.

To mark the moment, Rugby World Cup winner and former Wallaby captain John Eales together with Australia's Joseph Suaalii took the Webb Ellis Cup to the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. They were joined by 24 young people from local rugby communities representing the 24 teams involved in the tournament.

Full match schedule below

The 11th edition of Men’s Rugby World Cup is the first under the expanded 24-team format, delivering more matches, more drama and more opportunities for fans to experience the pinnacle of the sport. With seven consecutive weekends of rugby passion, the schedule has been designed to maximise attendance and global impact while prioritising player welfare and fan experience.

Men’s Rugby World Cup Australia 2027 will launch with a landmark moment in Perth | Boorloo on 1 October, as Australia face RWC debutants Hong Kong China in the opening match of the tournament, a powerful symbol of rugby’s expanding global footprint with more nations earning place to compete on the sport’s biggest stage. Following the opener, the Wallabies will travel from Perth to Sydney | Gadigal and Brisbane | Meeanjin during the pool phase, giving fans across the country the opportunity go all out and be part of this once in a generation national celebration.

Meanwhile, reigning champions South Africa will launch their Rugby World Cup campaign in Adelaide | Tarntanya on 3 October, taking on Italy as they pursue an historic third consecutive title. The Adelaide Oval will also mark Zimbabwe’s first Rugby World Cup appearance since 1991, as they face Wales the previous day.

The Springboks will return to Adelaide for only the second time ever when they kick off their 2027 Rugby World Cup campaign against Italy, before heading to Brisbane and Perth to face Georgia and Romania in their two remaining pool matches.

World Rugby announced RWC 2027 schedule, that will play out in eight different venues across Australia, early on Tuesday in Sydney.

The new format will see a round of 16 playing out on the weekend of 23 and 24 October, with the quarter-final set to be hosted a week later on 30 and 31 October in Sydney and Brisbane, the semi-finals on 5 and 6 November, and the Final on Saturday, 13 November – all at Stadium Australia in Sydney.

The Boks, who will have their sights set on trying to win their third successive RWC title, will line up against Italy in their opening match of the spectacle at the Adelaide Oval – where their only previous Test was against Australia in 2022 – at 5.45am (SA time) on Sunday 3 October, which will be followed by clashes against Georgia at the Brisbane Stadium on Sunday, 10 October (8.45am), and Romania at Perth Stadium on Sunday, 17 October, (1.15pm).

The winner and runner-up in each of the six pools and the four best-placed third teams will then advance to the round of 16. Should the Springboks finish first or second in Pool B, their first play-off match will be hosted in Perth, while the quarter-final will play out in Sydney, which is also the host venue for the semi-finals and final.

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus said the announcement of the 2027 RWC match schedule was the first step in ensuring that their planning was pinpoint for the international extravaganza.

“It’s pleasing that we now know where and when we are playing and we are fortunate that we have played in Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth and Sydney in the last few years in the Castle Lager Rugby Championship,” said Erasmus.

“We can now go full steam ahead with our planning and preparation for the tournament and we will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that we are as fresh and well prepared as possible for the competition.

“Our operations and logistics team will start getting into the finer details of the travel in the coming weeks, with our pool matches being hosted in different cities, while the coaches and high-performance staff will start having in-depth discussions about how to manage the players during the tournament to get the best out of them on the field.

“The one thing that pops out looking at the schedule is that, should we progress to the play-offs, there will be travel between the Round of 16 and quarter-final, which is something we have to factor into our planning, as it is a five-hour flight between Perth and Sydney and there is a two-hour time difference.

“Over and above that, our likely opponents could be either Australia or New Zealand and it would be good to see their travel schedules. But obviously, we have to make it through first, which will require a massive effort.

“There’s a lot of hard work ahead in the next 18 months but we are all very excited for the tournament and we are looking forward to putting the building blocks in place this season and next year before we depart for Australia.”

The Springboks are hoping to secure a warm-up match in June before launching their 2026 season in July with clashes against England in Johannesburg (4 July), Scotland in Pretoria (11 July) and Wales in Durban (18 July) as part of the new Nations Championship.

They will then meet the All Blacks in four Tests in the inaugural Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series in August and September, which includes two matches in Johannesburg, and one each in Cape Town and Baltimore.

This will be followed by an away Test against the Wallabies in Australia (27 September), with the venue to be confirmed, before the second leg of the Nations Championship in Europe at the end of the year, which will feature matches against Italy (7 November), France (14 November), and Ireland (21 November).

Played across 19 matchdays, the schedule deliberately clusters matches on weekends to maximise attendance and bring local communities together for an unforgettable celebration of rugby, with only two Monday across the tournament’s six weeks – one coinciding with a public holiday in Australia.

Two matches staged in the same city over the same weekend will take place across all seven vibrant host cities including Newcastle | Awabakal-Worimi and Townsville | Gurambilbarra, creating an international festival atmosphere with fans from up to four nations sharing the experience. The pool phase will conclude in a historic Super Sunday on 17 October, featuring five Rugby World Cup matches played in a single day, a first in tournament history and a showcase of rugby passion at its peak.

Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney will remain at the heart of the action as they host the first-ever Round of 16, giving pool winners and runners-up certainty over their knockout locations. The four best third-placed teams will also progress, with opponents determined by their pool of origin.

Brisbane Stadium and Stadium Australia in Sydney | Wangal will then take centre stage for back-to-back quarter-finals on Saturday 30 and Sunday 31 October, before the eyes of the rugby world turn fully to Sydney for the semi-finals, the bronze final and the ultimate climax: the Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 Final played on Saturday 13 November, 2027.

The calendar has been designed with balanced travel logistics to ensure fairness and high‑quality performance across all 24 teams, including a minimum of five rest days between matches. Kick-off times have been chosen to suit local conditions, including later starts in warmer cities such as Townsville and Brisbane, while enabling the widest possible global audience to follow their teams across different time zones.

Behind the scenes, this schedule is the result of a rigorous technical analysis of venues – from average temperatures and capacities to transport and security – combined with collaborative planning across competition management, team services, broadcast, medical, ticketing and wider stakeholders.

Match schedule highlights

24 teams, 52 matches, 19 match days, 7 cities and 8 venues
Opening match: Australia v Hong Kong China - 1 October, 2027, Perth Stadium
Final: 13 November, Stadium Australia, Sydney | Wangal
Super Sunday (17 October): five matches played in a single day for the first time ever to deliver an exciting end to the pool phase: Italy v Georgia, Ireland v Uruguay, Scotland v Portugal, France v Samoa, South Africa v Romania.
Knockout Drama: Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney will host the first-ever round of 16, followed by quarter-finals in Brisbane and Sydney, and then the semi-finals, bronze final, and the RWC Final at Stadium Australia on Saturday 13 November.

Demand for tickets is already running high, with hundreds of thousands of fans already registered for the Presale that starts on 18 February and closes on 4 March. This follows the incredible success of Superfan Passes, which sold out in under an hour last July, showing the excitement building for RWC 2027.

Tickets for Rugby World Cup 2027 will be available on a first-come, first-served basis via the official ticketing platform only at tickets.rugbyworldcup.com. Prices for the Presale and Application Sales Phases will start from AUD$40 for adults and AUD$20 for children. With one million tickets priced at AUD$100 or less and up to six price categories per match, the tournament has been designed to be accessible to fans of all budgets. Higher-priced tickets for the most iconic fixtures help support this inclusive pricing structure. To ensure fair access, ticket purchase limits will range from six to 10 tickets per match, per customer.

Fans have until 17 February to create and activate their RWC 2027 ticketing account to access the exclusive Presale.

World Rugby Chair Brett Robinson said: “The wait is over. This is the moment teams and fans have been waiting for and the start of their Rugby World Cup 2027 journey. We’ve assembled the most compelling match schedule to date, carefully designed to balance player welfare, fan experience and global reach. From the opening match in Perth | Boorloo to the final in Sydney | Wangal, get ready for six weeks of the greatest brand of rugby as our sport enters a new era of openness and entertainment with Australia 2027.”

Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 Managing Director Chris Stanley added “It’s an exhilarating time to be a rugby fan. The biggest edition of our sport’s pinnacle competition has taken full shape, with mouthwatering fixtures across the pool phase and blockbusters in every round. By clustering matches on weekends, local communities in our seven vibrant host cities will enjoy a festival atmosphere, with tickets available to suit all needs and budgets. Fans have a unique opportunity to be part of this historic edition and are encouraged to register now to access the exclusive Presale on 18 February.”

Fans can also secure ticket-inclusive hospitality and travel packages for all matches via Rugby World Cup Experiences to create unforgettable moments and enjoy exclusive access during the competition.