When and where is the Rugby World Cup 2027, and how do you plan a trip?

Key dates

• Pool stage: 1 to 17 October. Six pools of four, played over weekends, ending with 'Super Sunday' on 17 October.

• Round of 16: 23 and 24 October, the first in World Cup history, in Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney.

• Quarter-finals: Saturday 30 and Sunday 31 October, two in Brisbane and two at Stadium Australia, Sydney.

• Semi-finals: Friday 5 and Saturday 6 November, Stadium Australia, 20:00 kick-offs in the published schedule.

• Bronze final: Friday 12 November, Stadium Australia.

• Final: Saturday 13 November 2027, Stadium Australia, the venue of the 2003 final.

The pools: A New Zealand, Australia, Chile, Hong Kong China; B South Africa, Italy, Georgia, Romania; C Argentina, Fiji, Spain, Canada; D Ireland, Scotland, Uruguay, Portugal; E France, Japan, United States, Samoa; F England, Wales, Tonga, Zimbabwe.

Kick-off times can still change, so check rugbyworldcup.com before booking travel around a match.

The host cities and their big pool matches

Rugby Australia lists eight venues. Match counts and fixtures below are from the schedule released in February 2026.

• Perth, Perth Stadium (60,000). Opening match, Australia v Hong Kong China, Friday 1 October; New Zealand v Chile on 2 October; Ireland v Scotland on 10 October; two round-of-16 matches. Perth is the outlier: a long flight from the east coast and two to three hours behind it.

• Adelaide, Adelaide Oval (53,000). Six pool matches, including Wales v Zimbabwe on 2 October, South Africa v Italy on 3 October and England v Zimbabwe on 8 October. The oval is a walk from the city centre.

• Melbourne, Docklands Stadium (53,000). Six pool matches and two round-of-16 matches; the retractable roof is reported to stay closed for all eight. Includes France v United States on 2 October and Wales v Tonga on 8 October. Our Melbourne guide covers the city.

• Sydney, Stadium Australia (82,000) and Sydney Football Stadium (42,500). Stadium Australia has New Zealand v Australia on Saturday 9 October, England v Wales on 16 October, two quarter-finals, the semi-finals, bronze final and final; the Football Stadium has three pool matches and two round-of-16 games.

• Brisbane, Brisbane Stadium (52,500). Six pool matches, including England v Tonga on 2 October, France v Japan on 9 October and Australia v Chile on 16 October, plus two round-of-16 matches and two quarter-finals.

• Newcastle, Newcastle Stadium (30,000) and Townsville, North Queensland Stadium (25,000). Four pool matches each, both World Cup debuts. Newcastle is reachable by intercity train from Sydney; Townsville is a flight north, and the jumping-off point for Magnetic Island.

Tickets: what is left and how to buy

World Rugby put more than 2.5 million tickets on sale, with one million at A$100 or less. Adult prices start at A$40 and children's at A$20 for every match except the semi-finals and final; under-twos go free. The presale ran in February and March 2026 and a ballot followed in May, with results emailed from 23 June 2026. By the one-year-to-go mark, 1.3 million tickets had been sold to fans from 164 countries, and remaining tickets went on general sale from 12:00 AEST on 1 October 2026.

Buy only at tickets.rugbyworldcup.com. Purchase limits run from six to ten tickets per match per customer. Ticket-inclusive hospitality and travel packages, including for the final, are sold through the official Rugby World Cup Experiences site. Big fixtures (Wallabies v All Blacks, England v Wales, the knockouts) are the hardest; pool matches in Newcastle, Townsville and Adelaide are the easiest way in, and often the best atmosphere for the smaller nations.

Planning the trip: time zones, travel and weather

Time zones. New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia move clocks forward on the first Sunday in October, which is 3 October 2027, two days into the tournament. Queensland and Western Australia do not. From then on, Sydney, Newcastle and Melbourne are on UTC+11, Adelaide UTC+10:30, Brisbane and Townsville UTC+10, and Perth UTC+8, three hours behind Sydney. Check which time your ticket shows.

Getting around. Fly between cities: Perth to Sydney crosses the continent, and Brisbane to Townsville is a domestic hop north. Newcastle is the exception, about two and a half to three hours by NSW TrainLink intercity train from Sydney's Central station. If you plan to drive between Brisbane and the coast or out to the Great Ocean Road, read driving in Australia.

Weather. October is spring in the south. Long-term averages from Bureau of Meteorology data put October highs at roughly 20 °C in Melbourne, the low to mid 20s °C in Sydney and Perth, the mid to high 20s °C in Brisbane and about 30 °C in Townsville. North Queensland is still in its dry season in October, before the wet and the stinger season; see best time to visit Australia.

Where to base yourself. If you follow one team through the pool stage, you will usually play in three different cities in about two weeks, so book flexible rooms. If you only want the knockouts, base in Sydney for the second half of the tournament, with a side trip to Brisbane for the quarter-finals.

Entry, money and adding a holiday

Visa. US, Canadian, Japanese and other ETA-eligible passport holders apply for the Electronic Travel Authority in the official Australian ETA app, where the only charge is an A$20 service fee; most British and EU citizens use the free eVisitor through ImmiAccount. Apply weeks ahead, not the night before: see our Australia ETA app guide and Australia visa rules.

Tipping and costs. Tipping is not expected in Australia, and wages are high, so food and drink cost more than many visitors expect; see tipping in Australia and what to pack for Australia.

Add-ons. A Townsville match pairs with Magnetic Island (Magnetic Island guide) and the reef from Cairns (how many days in Cairns), both at their best in the dry season. A Melbourne match pairs with the Great Ocean Road (Twelve Apostles guide). New Zealand is a three-hour flight from Sydney if you have a free week between the pools and the knockouts. For more on what else is worth timing a trip around this year, see best places to visit in 2027.

Frequently asked questions