Having secured a return to the Rugby World Cup after missing out on the last tournament, the Canadian men can start planning for the expanded 24-team competition in Australia in 2027.

Canada became the 21st team to book its ticket to the World Cup when Japan defeated the U.S. 47-21 in Sacramento in Pacific Nations Cup play.

The six-country Pacific Nations Cup sends three teams to the World Cup. With Fiji and Japan already pre-qualified by virtue of their performance at the 2023 tournament, the three best non-qualified teams secured an automatic berth in the 2027 field.

Japan's weekend win assured Canada of one of those berths, as well as a spot in the Pacific Nations Cup semifinals, along with No. 9 Fiji, No. 13 Japan and No. 16 Tonga.

"A bit of a nice moment when we all realized that

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