Canada, ranked 25th in the world, is drawn into Group C with No. 6 Argentina, No. 8 Fiji and No. 15 Spain at the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia.
Wednesday's draw in Sydney also pitted the host Wallabies, ranked seventh in the world, against New Zealand, ranked second in Group A. The two opponents have never faced each other in pool play before.
As the lowest-ranked team in the expanded 24-team tournament, the Canadians were always going to get a tough draw. However, it's safe to say things could have been worse for Stephen Meehan's side.
In Argentina, Canada was drawn against the lowest-ranked team in Pot 1, although it routed the British and Irish Lions 28–24 in Dublin in June. Fiji finished second in Pot 2 and Spain finished third in Pot 3.
Based on the rankings, at worst, Canada would be tied with defending champion South Africa (first place), Australia (7th place) and Georgia (13th place).
But Group C still promises to be a tough field with Argentina and Fiji combining fitness and talent.
Although Canada hasn't played a full Argentina team since a 22-15 loss in Calgary in 2005, the Canadians have lost six subsequent meetings with Argentina's second XV. Fiji beat Canada 63-10 when they met in September in a Pacific Nations Cup match in Commerce City, Colorado.
The Canadians will target Spain in the tournament, having pushed the European team to the limit in a 24-23 loss in June in Edmonton, a game decided by a last-second penalty.
The expanded tournament has a new format, with six groups of four teams participating. The top two from each group, plus the top four third-place finishers, advance to the knockout rounds, starting with a new round of 16 players.
The Canadians, who failed to qualify for 2023, are hoping to snap an 11-game winless streak (0-9-2) into the tournament after beating Tonga 25-20 in 2011. Canada has only qualified from the pool once, in 1991, when it lost to the All Blacks 29-13 in the quarter-finals.
The 2027 FIFA World Cup will take place from 1 October to 13 November in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Newcastle, Perth, Sydney and Townsville. The host Wallabies will take part in the tournament opener in Perth, with the full schedule scheduled to be released on February 3.
This is the fourth time the Canadian men have tied Fiji in the tournament. Canada won 13-7 when they met in 1991 in France, but lost subsequent games in 1999 (38-22) in France and 2007 (29-16) in Wales.
Canada has never drawn with Argentina or Spain at a World Cup before.
Canada missed the 2023 tournament after losing a two-game qualifying series to the United States (59-50 on aggregate) and Chile (54-56).
The 2027 tournament features 12 teams who automatically qualified by finishing in the top three of their groups at the 2023 tournament. These are France, New Zealand, Italy, Ireland, South Africa, Scotland, Wales, Fiji, Australia, England, Argentina and Japan.
The remaining 12 competitors booked tickets to various regional tournaments, with Canada qualifying through the Pacific Nations Cup. Other teams that have gone this route include Georgia, Spain, Romania, Portugal, Tonga, USA, Uruguay, Chile, Samoa, Zimbabwe and Hong Kong.
Spain finished second at the 2025 European Rugby Championship, losing the final to Georgia 46–28.
The top-placed teams in Australia's Groups A, B, C and D will face one of the third-placed teams in the round of 16, but could face the other group winner in the quarter-finals. In contrast, the winners of Groups E and F will face the runners-up in the other groups before the semi-finals.
2027 Rugby World Cup draw
Group A: No. 2 New Zealand, No. 7 Australia, No. 17 Chile, No. 23 Hong Kong.
Group B: No. 1 South Africa, No. 10 Italy, No. 13 Georgia, No. 22 Romania.
Group C: No. 6 Argentina, No. 8 Fiji, No. 15 Spain, No. 25 Canada.
Group D: No. 4 Ireland, No. 9 Scotland, No. 14 Uruguay, No. 20 Portugal.
Group E: No. 5 France, No. 12 Japan, No. 16 USA, No. 19 Samoa.
Group F: No. 3 England, No. 11 Wales, No. 18 Tonga, No. 24 Zimbabwe.
