World Rugby Men's Rankings preview: 27 September, 2025

World Rugby has published the ranking permutations for The Rugby Championship 2025, the second leg of the South America/Pacific play-off for Men's Rugby World Cup 2027 and the opening match of the Rugby Europe Men's Conference 2025-26 this weekend. 

Permutation highlights:

• South Africa will only surrender top spot – to Ireland – if they lose to Argentina in Durban.
• Although the Springboks aren’t able to gain improve their rating with victory over Los Pumas this weekend, it is still not possible for a victorious New Zealand to catch them.
• The most the All Blacks can gain for winning their Bledisloe Cup encounter with Australia at Eden Park is 0.26 rating points, and they head into the weekend two places and 2.52 points in arrears of the Springboks.
• New Zealand will drop below France and England to a record-equalling low of fifth if they are beaten, while a defeat by more than 15 points will see the Wallabies become the higher-ranked of the two sides and put New Zealand at their lowest-ever position of sixth.
• Australia have only been ranked above New Zealand for one week since the rankings began in October 2003, following their 22-10 defeat of the All Blacks in the Rugby World Cup 2003 semi-finals.
• Such a margin of defeat, combined with a win for Argentina in South Africa, would see New Zealand slip a further place to seventh – and outside what will be Band 1 for the Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 Draw in December.
• The most that Australia can move up the rankings this weekend is two places to fifth. This would require the Wallabies to win by more than 15 points and Argentina not to match that margin.  
• Argentina are too far behind England to claim fifth place, even if they win well in Durban.
• Chile must beat Samoa by more than 15 points in their RWC 2027 qualifier in Viña del Mar to improve on 20th – a scenario that would lift them to a new high of 17th, one behind their opponents.
• Los Cóndores were on course to win by that margin – and overtake Manu Samoa – in the rankings after establishing a 32-13 lead in the first leg of the South America/Pacific play-off in Salt Lake City last weekend … until Samoa fought back to earn a 32-32 draw.  
• Samoa will climb above Spain into 14th if they secure a win that confirms their place as the 23rd qualifier for Australia 2027.
• Chile cannot slip from 20th even with a heavy loss to Manu Samoa.
• Turkey, the lowest-ranked team in action this weekend in 85th, must win by the opening Rugby Europe Men’s Conference 2025-26 fixture against Ukraine by more than 15 points to climb the rankings.
• Such a win would lift Turkey six places to a new high of 79th and condemn their visitors Ukraine to a five-place drop to 57th, one shy of their all-time low. A smaller margin of defeat would still see Ukraine drop three places.
• Ukraine cannot improve on 52nd this weekend as they will only gain a maximum of 0.16 rating points for beating a side 33 places and 11.91 rating points below them before home weighting is factored in.