The Springboks will return to Adelaide for only the second time ever when they kick off their 2027 Rugby World Cup campaign against Italy on 3 October, 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 quarterfinal set to be hosted a week later on 30 and 31 October in Sydney and Brisbane, the semifinals on 5 and 6 November, and the final on 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 3 October, which will be followed by clashes against Georgia at the Brisbane Stadium on 10 October (8:45am), and Romania at Perth Stadium on 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 playoff match will be hosted in Perth, while the quarterfinal will play out in Sydney, which is also the host venue for the semifinals 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 playoffs, there will be travel between the round of 16 and quarterfinal, which is something we have to factor into our planning, as the flight is just under five hours 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).
Springbok RWC 2027 fixtures:
Pool stages:
3 October – 5:45am: SA v Italy (Adelaide Oval)
10 October – 8:45am: SA v Georgia (Brisbane Stadium)
17 October – 1:15pm15: SA v Romania (Perth Stadium)
Round of 16:
23 and 24 October (Perth Stadium/Docklands Stadium, Melbourne)
Quarterfinals:
30 and 31 October (Stadium Australia, Sydney/Brisbane Stadium)
Semifinals:
5 and 6 November: Stadium Australia, Sydney
Final:
13 November – 11am: Stadium Australia, Sydney