The UAE is set to host the final qualification tournament for the men’s Rugby World Cup 2027, with the event scheduled to take place from November 8-18 at the end of the year in Dubai.
The final chapter in the qualification journey - set to take place at the Sevens Stadium - will determine the 24th and last team to earn their place at the showpiece tournament in Australia, which will run from October 1 to November 13, 2027.
A total of four teams will compete in a round-robin format across three match-days in Dubai.
The team finishing top of the standings will secure the final spot at the World Cup, completing the line-up for what promises to be the biggest and most inclusive edition of the tournament to date. It will be the first edition to feature an expanded format with 24 teams, a new round of 16 and an increase in the number of matches to 52.
Belgium are the first team confirmed to participate in the event, having finished fifth in the Rugby Europe Championship 2025.
They will be joined by three more teams still to be determined through ongoing regional qualification pathways; the Rugby Africa Cup 2025, the Asia Rugby Championship 2025, the Sudamerica Rugby Championship, and the Pacific Nations Cup 2025.
The men’s pool draw will take place in December and will be based on the World Rugby men’s rankings at the end of the November international window.
With the rankings set to determine the banding of teams for the draw, every result between now and December could directly impact the makeup of the six pools of four.
Fixtures played during the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia will not be counted towards the rankings used for Rugby World Cup seeding purposes.
World Rugby chair Brett Robinson said: “The final qualification tournament is always a thrilling, do-or-die moment in the build-up to Rugby World Cup – and it’s fitting that we bring it to a world-class destination like Dubai.
"As we head towards the most inclusive and globally representative tournament ever, with 24 teams competing in an expanded format and at least one nation from each of our regional associations, this final step on the ‘Journey to Australia 2027’ will be a celebration of ambition, resilience and the global spirit of rugby. We cannot wait to see which team earns the final place and joins us for what promises to be a unique celebration of rugby and Australia in 2027.”
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Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
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