The countdown to Rugby World Cup 2027 has officially reached the 365-day marker.
Tournament organisers will mark the occasion in Sydney on Thursday, putting the Webb Ellis Cup on show in the city that will host the final for the second time.
There is, however, a lot of rugby to be run and won before the Wallabies open the tournament against Hong Kong China in Perth on Oct. 1, 2027, with the world's best out to refine their personnel, style and approach over the next 12 months.
Here's what each nation ranked 12-1 will want to remedy before World Cup kicks off this time next year.
12. Italy
Italy are in an interesting spot. They had a memorable Six Nations with an historic win over England, finishing fourth. They also have some fantastic players in key positions; the likes of centre pairing Tommaso Menoncello and Ignacio Brex, Paolo Garbisi and skipper Michele Lamaro. But the Azzuri lack the depth to back up their solid performances, which is vital in a World Cup. You can't be up and down all the time. After beating Scotland on the opening day, they lost to Ireland (a game they had a chance to win), and France before beating England and losing to Wales again. They lack the depth to be at their best for a full tournament, be it Six Nations or World Cup. If they can bring through a couple more guys who can add something in the last 15-20 minutes of games, they can go to the next level. If not, it's hard to see them advancing beyond the Round of 16 at the World Cup.
- James Regan
11. Wales
The nature of this World Cup means Wales will probably get through their group. They have England, Tonga and Zimbabwe, and Wales are improving steadily under Steve Tandy. They had that awful 17-match losing run from Feb. 2024 to July 2025, but they managed to secure back-to-back Test victories against Italy and Fiji earlier this year. So they are building, but strength in depth remains a real issue for Wales. They have some outstanding players -- led by the brilliant Jac Morgan, Dewi Lake, Louis Rees-Zammit and Aaron Wainwright, and they showed admirable heart to overcome Fiji 39-24 in the summer. But Argentina eased past them 35-21, while the Boks swiped them aside with a 43-0 victory. All of this is playing out against a backdrop of uncertainty in the regions, with either the Ospreys or Scarlets ceasing to exit by 2028. Over the next year, Wales need to settle on a fly-half, tight-head and fullback, nurture the ball-carriers to give them more front-foot ball and tackle their toughest task: get back to winning ways.
- Tom Hamilton
10. Fiji
Life is rarely dull in Fijian rugby. Still, 2026 has proven to be a particularly tumultuous year already following the departure of Flying Fijians coach Mick Byrne, who was replaced by Senirusi Seruvakula on an interim basis. The Fijians have since lost all three of their July Nations Championship Tests, albeit all of which were played in the U.K., and recently were turned over by Japan in the Pacific Nations Cup final. Meanwhile, the Union received "31 applicants" for the vacant head coaching role, a position that was advertised last month and for which the contract is due to start on Oct. 5. That leaves the successful applicant exactly 363 days to prepare for Fiji's World Cup opener against Spain in Newcastle. If there's good news, it's that Simon Rauwalui was able to ready Fiji in a similar timeframe ahead of the 2023 World Cup when the Pacific islanders stunned Australia and then pushed England all the way in their quarterfinal. They also pushed the Wallabies extremely close in 2025 and have a core group of elite European-based talent and growing depth emerging through the Fijian Drua. Getting it all to come together, however, will be the real challenge.
- Sam Bruce
9. Japan
They will seek to avoid it where they can by playing a fast game that moves opposition defences from side to side, but the Brave Blossoms will be desperate to unlock even a 10% improvement at the set piece. While they have the tall timber to be a lineout force -- skipper Warner Dearns is among the game's elite locks -- Japan endured a torrid afternoon on their own throw against the Wallabies in Townsville in August. But their scrum is, and has always been, of greater concern, with their weakness at the key set piece also on show that afternoon at Queensland Country Bank Stadium. Australia marched over the top of Japan on two separate occasions in the second half and earned further penalties, despite the fact Wallabies tighthead Massimo De Lutiis was making his Test debut. Eddie Jones won't be able to work miracles here, but a quarterfinal appearance next year may well depend upon it. They will look to use their recent Pacific Nations Cup triumph as a springboard into their November Nations Championship Tests.
- Sam Bruce
8. Argentina
Consistency. With the World Cup a year away, Los Pumas are still struggling to sustain a week-in, week-out level of performance that breeds confidence and establishes them as a winning side. Beyond the major scalps they have claimed under Felipe Contepomi-including famous victories over the All Blacks, Springboks, Wallabies, and the British & Irish Lions-this year has yielded just one win, one draw, and four defeats. On paper, that makes for a bleak return, particularly given that all six fixtures were played on home soil. However, those numbers demand closer inspection. The coaching staff deliberately opted to rotate heavily with an eye on the ultimate prize, testing squad depth and exploring options across every position: a total of 25 players have been handed their Test debuts over the last three years, and for the final three matches, 18 frontline starters were left out to prioritize rest. Will Los Pumas find the necessary regularity in time for 2027?
- Maxi De Mingo
7. Scotland
It's time for the stars to step up. If there was ever a time for Scotland to make an impact at a World Cup, it's now. Their backline, spearheaded by Finn Russell who stood out for the British and Irish Lions last year and captain Sione Tuipulotu, is as good as any other side in the world. Their forwards are solid and have done a job on several teams in the recent past including England and France in this year's Six Nations. But the time has come for them to put it all together. Russell, Tuipulotu and other senior figures like Zander Fagerson, Rory Garge and Jamie Ritchie need to deliver. They have more than enough talent between them to do so. Their clash with Ireland is the biggest in pool play next year (closely followed by Australia and New Zealand) ... what a statement a win in that match would be, as would a first ever victory over the All Blacks later this year.
- James Regan
6. Australia
We don't mean to sound like a broken record, but the Wallabies' key concern hasn't exactly changed for some time. For basically since Michael Cheika started switching things up before, and during the 2019 World Cup, the Wallabies have used a rotating cast of No. 10s. It started with James O'Connor under Dave Rennie, then came Noah Lolesio, Quade Cooper and Bernard Foley; Ben Donaldson was also given a crack, before Eddie Jones then made Carter Gordon his man for the 2023 World Cup - until he wasn't. Joe Schmidt backed Lolesio in his first year, but then moved on to Tom Lynagh and Tane Edmed, with separate cameos from O'Connor. As it stands right now, Gordon and Donaldson appear to be the front-runners under Les Kiss, though the Queenslander is stacking up injury absences. The same goes for Lynagh, who last weekend picked up yet another head knock. Meanwhile, Foley and O'Connor have both signed on for Super Rugby next year. If Gordon can stay fit, he will don the No. 10 jersey come October next year. Otherwise, things appear to be falling into place for host nation.
- Sam Bruce
5. England
It's been a brutal 2026 in more ways than one. England endured their worst ever Six Nations campaign earlier in the year as they won just one of their five matches, including a first ever defeat to Italy. Then came the summer programme, complete with 25,000 miles of travel as they endured 20 chastening minutes against South Africa to lose 45-21 in Johannesburg, then dominated Fiji to win 73-8 in Everton. It finished up with a 31-24 win in Argentina. There are reasons for optimism: Fin Smith should be the fly-half to guide England through to the World Cup, while Benhard Janse van Rensburg's introduction has come at just the right time. England displayed more of their identity over the summer, finetuning a gameplan playing more to their strengths. Maro Itoje will also benefit from having the summer off. But there are concerns: the lack of depth at hooker, England's struggles to put together a focused 80 minutes and their disciplinary issues. The latter remains their Achilles heel. They have picked up 14 yellow cards and one red across their eight Test matches this year. Take the Argentina match: at one stage they were down to 12 men and very nearly coughed up their 14-point advantage, only to just get through as Henry Slade managed to prevent Bautista Delguy from giving Argentina a chance to draw things level at the death. Steve Borthwick remains in charge and retains the support of the RFU, but England need to put down a marker in November's Nations Championship.
- Tom Hamilton
4. France
On the face of it, France are flying. Back-to-back Six Nations crowns and a lineup most teams would kill for. But there still seems to be a lingering sense that this 'golden generation' is being wasted. Fans -- and players -- want Grand Slams and, of course, a World Cup triumph. Their defeat to Scotland in the penultimate round of this year's Six Nations summed it up. A side they should have put away on their path to ultimate glory and didn't. They scraped a win against England the following week, too. There is so much talent in this side, but are they ruthless enough? They weren't in 2023 and haven't been strong enough to pick up a Slam since 2022. Fabien Galthie has made some big, bold selection calls in the last 12 months. They've paid off to a degree, but he needs to get everything right in the lead up to the World Cup and it's imperative he keeps everyone happy if they're to challenge for a trophy that has so far alluded them.
- James Regan
3. Ireland
Andy Farrell's side managed their summer programme without several frontline players, including fly-half Jack Crowley, Andrew Porter and captain Caelan Doris, but came away with hard fought comeback 33-31 win over Australia, a 31-24 triumph over Japan, and finished with a 40-21 defeat to the All Blacks. The last match saw far too many handling errors and general inaccuracies. Ireland's recent record against the Springboks, France and New Zealand does not make pleasant reading: two wins in their last 10 matches against that trio, so Ireland must find a way to bridge the gap. Farrell has been focusing on building depth over the past year, but they need to start building some momentum. The fly-half position will continue to be a topic of debate right through to the start of next year's tournament, while the age profile of several of Ireland's key protagonists means their bodies will have to be carefully managed over the next year.
- Tom Hamilton
2. New Zealand
Dave Rennie would have learned a lot about his side on their tour of South Africa, which came at a perfect time. While they didn't get the results (first Test aside), it gave the whole team, players and coaches alike, time to bond and get to know each other a year out from a World Cup. Rennie was left lamenting basic mistakes like handling errors and lineout failures that helped release the pressure on the Boks at various times throughout the three Test losses. Some of those were discipline related; who could forget Tupou Vaa'i's needless ankle grab when the All Blacks were hard on the attack late in the third Test? Most of these areas are easily fixable, but they're also very uncharacteristic of the slick operation we expected from the All Blacks. There's no suggestion that standards are slipping, but Rennie will want to see those areas tidied up significantly at the end of this year. Their work under the high ball, however, appears more problematic.
- James Regan
1. South Africa
Cracks are beginning to show in the Springboks' defence that has proven so formidable over the last eight years. The Rugby's Greatest Rivalry (RGR) series against the All Blacks showed weaknesses in their rush defence and a much-changed lineup fared no better in a 42-38 loss against the Wallabies. The opening RGR Test defeat (a 33-16 loss) was alarming, but although the Boks won the next three, they continued to leak tries. Across the four Tests against the All Blacks, they conceded 17 in total. Earlier in 2026, England scored three against them and Scotland four. More recently, Australia scored five against the Boks in Perth. South Africa will have to stay alert against teams capable of playing expansive running rugby with clever inside passes. They remain the best team in the world, but their dominance was initially built on a solid defence, and they need to regain the ability to knuckle down in a tight game such as the 2023 World Cup final -- which they won 12-11 against the All Blacks.
- Leonard Solms