Wales hope for luck of draw as World Cup takes shape

Wales will find out who they face at the Rugby World Cup in 2027 on Wednesday morning when the official draw is held in Sydney.

- By TOM COLEMAN

Steve Tandy's men have endured a bruising run this autumn, including a humiliating hammering at the hands of world champions South Africa. However, they will be hoping they can build some momentum ahead of the tournament in Australia.

Wales are in Band 2 after securing their place in the top 12 of the latest world rankings due to their narrow win over Japan.

The tournament has been expanded to 24 teams this time around, and there are a few other significant changes to bear in mind.

Here's how it will all work.

The bands

Band 1: South Africa, New Zealand, England, Ireland, France, Argentina

Band 2: Australia, Fiji, Scotland, Italy, Wales, Japan.

Band 3: Georgia, Uruguay, Spain, USA, Chile, Tonga.

Band 4: Samoa, Portugal, Romania, Hong Kong, Zimbabwe, Canada

Best case scenario

Wales cannot be drawn with any of the teams from Band 2, with their pool set to take one team from each of the other three bands.