Scotland world rankings state of play revealed as key club match rescheduled for eve of Six Nations

World Rugby has confirmed that Scotland will be in the second band of seeds for the draw for the 2027 Rugby World Cup which will take place next month. Last Sunday’s defeat by Argentina at Murrayfield saw Gregor Townsend’s side slip from eighth to ninth in the world rankings, scuppering their hopes of being in the top six when the draw is made on December 3 in Australia, the host nation. The top six countries in the world will form the top band of seeds, followed by those ranked seventh to 12th in pot two, 13th to 18th in pot three and 19th to 24th in pot four. All 24 qualifiers are now known after Samoa pipped Belgium for the final place. South Africa, New Zealand, England, Ireland and Argentina have all confirmed their places as top seeds for the draw but France could still drop out of the top six if they lose to Australia by more than 15 points in Paris on Saturday. Such an outcome would see the Wallabies placed into Pool A of Band 1 as the host nation. Scotland, Fiji and Italy are guaranteed their places in Band 2 regardless of their results this weekend. While they will definitely be in pot two, the Scots can still move up and down within the rankings. Townsend’s side will regain the eighth place they lost after letting slip a 21-0 advantage over Argentina if they win against Tonga and Fiji lose to Spain. But Scotland will drop to 10th if they lose to Tonga and Italy beat Chile. Such a scenario would see the Scots drop below Italy for the first time since February 2013. They would go down to 11th in the unlikely scenario that they lose by more than 15 points and Wales stun New Zealand by the same margin, which would see the Welsh returning to the top 10 for the first time since July 2024. Meanwhile, Edinburgh Rugby’s home URC match against Ulster has been rescheduled for Friday, March 13. The game was postponed in early October due to Storm Amy. Original tickets remain valid for the new date and remaining briefs are now back on sale. The game will take place the night before Scotland’s final 2026 Six Nations clash against Ireland in Dublin which means Edinburgh are set to go into the match without their frontline Scotland players such as Darcy Graham, Duhan van der Merwe, Pierre Schoeman, Ewan Ashman and Grant Gilchrist.