Rugby World Cup 2023 to Reach the Final Odds - Who will be in the RWC final?

New Zealand and South Africa each have three titles, Australia have two and England have one. But every World Cup provides its upsets which makes for intriguing viewing.

Going into the 2023 World Cup it is hard to imagine that this won’t be the best of the lot to date. So many of the so-called tier-two sides have been performing admirably while some tier-one sides have underperformed recently.

The draw has also thrown up some big matches early on. While it has been much criticised, the can have a few interesting turns.

The top five ranked teams in the world - Ireland, South Africa, Scotland, France, and New Zealand are all in Pool A and B. That means that should Ireland and South Africa progress, they are likely to face France and New Zealand in the quarter-finals.

So, three of the top five ranked sides will be knocked out before the semi-finals. The other half of the draw also has some interesting prospects though. England, Argentina, Australia and Wales will in normal circumstances expect to progress to the quarter-final.

But the form of those sides, bar for Argentina, has been atrocious over the last year or more. That opens the opportunity for teams like Fiji, Samoa, Japan, and Georgia to cause huge upsets and perhaps progress.

However, it also gives all four of those tier-one nations confidence as they don’t face the toughest of draws. Their road to the semi-finals could be far “easier” in that sense.

It will be about picking who you believe will get to the final based on the draw handed to any specific side. Can one of the top five ranked sides come through all those tough matches and then still perform at their best come the final four?

Below we focus on all the realistic contenders for the World Cup and a few outsiders.