Scotland vs Australia: What impact Autumn Nations Test could have on World Rankings & RWC 2027 draw
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Scotland are looking to end their 2024 Autumn Nations Test Series with a win when they welcome Australia to Murrayfield this weekend.
Gregor Townsend’s men have won two of their three matches so far this month with victories over Fiji and Portugal coming either side of a defeat to world champions South Africa. As for the Wallabies, they have been in excellent form and had to Edinburgh on the back of a win over England in London and a demolition job on Wales in Cardiff.
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Hide AdIt’s not only pride that’s on the line when the two nations meet but also points in World Rugby’s international rankings which will directly impact the draw for the 2027 Rugby World Cup. Here is everything you need to know about what a win for either side will do to the table and what it means for the big show in just three years time.
World Rugby Men’s rankings (as of 17/11/24)
This is how the top 15 in the Men’s World Rankings currently looks:
- South Africa - 92.78 points
- Ireland - 90.78 points
- New Zealand - 90.09 points
- France - 88.09 points
- Argentina - 85.40 points
- Scotland - 82.70 points
- England - 82.31 points
- Australia - 82.17 points
- Fiji - 80.07 points
- Italy - 78.92 points
- Wales - 74.01 points
- Georgia - 73.85 points
- Japan - 72.95 points
- Samoa - 72.68 points
- USA - 68.90 points
What a win for Scotland or Australia will mean for World Rankings
Scotland currently sit sixth in the World Rankings and Australia eighth, either side of England, with only 0.53 points between them. Scotland would take less than one point for a win, meaning they cannot jump above Argentina into fifth spot regardless of the result, but Australia could overtake both England and Scotland and go sixth if they win at Murrayfield (source: Two Cents Rugby).
Why the World Rankings matter and what they mean for Rugby World Cup 2027 draw
The reason that the World Rankings are important is because they directly determine each nation’s seeding for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, which will be played in Australia. The competition is being expanded from 20 teams to 24 teams, which means the previous format of four groups of five will be replaced by six groups of four and an extra knockout phase.
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Hide AdThe teams who are ranked one to sixth in the World Rankings will be top seeds for the draw, meaning that a number of teams will be vying for that sixth spot. If Scotland are going to make sure they finish inside the top six then a win over Australia this weekend could be a big step towards them doing that.
However, if they lose to the Wallabies then all is not lost. The draw for the 2027 Rugby World Cup will not be made until January 2026. That means that Scotland will still have next year’s Six Nations and Autumn Nations Test Series to either improve or hold on to their ranking.
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