**World Rugby Moves World Cup Draw, Raising Stakes for Wales’ Vital Japan Tour**
A significant announcement from World Rugby has heightened the importance of Wales’ approaching summer tour of Japan. The governing body has revealed that the draw for the 2027 Rugby World Cup will take place this December, hinging on the world rankings as they stand at the close of the November international fixtures. This timing decision, made after the 2023 draw was widely criticised for occurring nearly three years before the tournament, means teams now have a shorter window to influence their seeding – and for Wales, who are currently languishing in 12th spot, it’s a sharp wake-up call.
Wales’ path to Australia 2027 has been complicated by a protracted period of poor results. Their most recent Six Nations campaign ended without a victory, extending a disheartening record to 17 Test matches without a win. The team haven’t celebrated success since a pool stage triumph over Georgia at the 2023 World Cup – an unprecedented barren run for a so-called Tier 1 nation in the professional era.
As a result, Welsh rugby finds itself in an unfamiliar and precarious global position. Having fallen behind Georgia in the rankings, Matt Sherratt’s team are now uncomfortably close to 13th-placed Japan and squarely in the sights of other emerging challengers. The timing of their two-match July series against Japan seems almost cruelly apt, as it offers both risk and opportunity in equal measure.
Sherratt, still serving as interim head coach, will be acutely aware of the consequences that this tour could have for Wales’ future. Victory in both matches would likely restore some battered confidence and may even elevate Wales to 11th in the rankings – a crucial move for a team keen to avoid further embarrassment and secure a more favourable World Cup draw. The margins, however, remain razor thin, with outcomes elsewhere also impacting their possible ascent.
Should Wales falter, losing even once to Eddie Jones’ Japanese side, the repercussions could be severe. A single defeat would see Japan leapfrog Wales in the global standings and could also enable Samoa to overtake them, which would mark a record low ranking of 14th for the Red Dragons. Perhaps more worrying, this would push Wales out of the second seeding tier for the World Cup (reserved for those placed 7th to 12th), likely consigning them to a perilous group in Australia should they fail to recover before the draw.
It’s not just the Japan tour that will determine Wales’ fate. The autumn internationals present another, arguably more daunting, hurdle. The team will need to lock horns with rugby powerhouses Argentina, New Zealand, and South Africa at home in Cardiff, while a rematch with Japan is also scheduled during this window. Should the summer tour end in more disappointment, it’s hard to see Wales clawing their way back into the top 12 against such formidable opposition.
Nevertheless, history does offer Wales a sliver of encouragement. Of the 14 meetings with Japan to date, Wales have emerged victorious on 13 occasions. Yet memories linger from their sole defeat – a convincing 28-3 reversal in Japan during 2013, when a depleted Welsh side was missing many regulars due to British & Irish Lions commitments. It stands as a reminder that there are no foregone conclusions in Test rugby, especially for a team struggling for form.
As this critical summer approaches, the new World Rugby decision has made every Welsh performance count for more than just pride. Fans and commentators alike will watch with interest – and potentially, trepidation – as the team attempts to arrest its slide and reassert its status among rugby’s elite. What transpires in Japan could go a long way to determining the complexion of Wales’ World Cup future.
With the draw now much closer to the tournament, clarity has arrived – but with it, mounting pressure on a Wales side in desperate need of results. The coming months promise drama and, perhaps, redemption for a team and a fanbase eager to believe in better days ahead.