Ireland Rugby World Cup 2027 dates and venues confirmed

The venues and dates for the 2027 Rugby World Cup have been confirmed with Andy Farrell's Ireland playing pool matches in Sydney, Perth and Melbourne.

Portugal will be Ireland's first Pool D opponents on Monday 4 October with the game taking place at the Sydney Football Stadium at 7.15am Irish time (5.15pm local).

Ireland, who have never qualified for the semi-finals of the tournament in 10 attempts, take on Scotland in their second group tie with a 10.45am Irish time kick-off (5.45pm local) in Perth Stadium on Sunday 10 October.

Docklands Stadium in Melbourne hosts Ireland's final pool game against Uruguay on Sunday 17 October with a start time of 4.45am Irish (2.45pm local).

The tournament, for the first time featuring 24 teams, made up of six pools of four with a round of 16, kicks off on 1 October when the Wallabies host Hong Kong China at Perth Stadium.

The final will take place on 13 November in Stadium Australia, Sydney,

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 being held in Stadium Australia.

Back-to-back champions South Africa will launch their campaign in Adelaide on 3 October as they take on Italy.

There will be 52 matches played across seven consecutive weekends and tickets will be available from 18 February.

"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," said organisers.

Ticket prices vary with a Category 6 ticket for Ireland v Scotland coming in at AU$65, while a Category 1 ticket for the same game is AU$635.

"The wait is over," World Rugby Chair Brett Robinson said.

"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 to the final in Sydney get ready for six weeks of the greatest brand of rugby as our sport enters a new era of openness and entertainment."

Follow a live blog on France v Ireland in the Six Nations on Thursday from 8.10pm. Listen to live commentary on RTÉ Radio 1

Watch France v Ireland in the Under-20 Six Nations on Saturday from 7.50pm on the RTÉ News Channel and RTÉ Player

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