Chile have secured qualification for a second Men’s Rugby World Cup after a thrilling 31-12 victory over Samoa in the South America/Pacific play-off second leg at Estadio Sausalito in Viña del Mar on Saturday.
This much-celebrated triumph sees Chile become the 23rd team to qualify for the expanded 24-team tournament in Australia, their second appearance on rugby’s biggest stage.
A capacity crowd of passionate fans, decked in red, filled Estadio Sausalito as Chile clinched a coveted spot at Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 with the victory a milestone for Chilean rugby, showcasing their growing prowess on the global stage.
The match was a high-stakes re-match after a dramatic encounter the previous weekend in Salt Lake City, Utah, where Chile squandered a 19-point lead, allowing Samoa to claw their way back to secure a 32-32 draw.
With Australia 2027 qualification on the line, Los Cóndores, led by Rugby World Cup veteran and captain Clemente Saavedra, had a huge party in a stadium washed in red.
The first half saw Chile go to the break with a thirteen-point advantage thanks to their courageous defence and to their capacity to turn into points the different opportunities Samoa gave them.
After Martin Talapusi missed an early penalty, Santiago Videla added two of his, the second after numer eight Abraham Papali’I was sin-binned. In those ten minutes, Los Cóndores took advantage of the extra man scoring a try through scrumhalf Benjamin Videla, converted by his older brother. A second try from fullback Iñaki Ayarza put them in front 18-0 before Samoa struck back with a try from centre Melani Nanai in the left to go to the break 18-7.
It took the Samoans 24 minutes to cross the tryline once again when reserve Jonah Mahu’u emerged as the try-scorer from the bottom of a ruck, reducing the score to six points difference. Videla soon took it to nine and then to twelve with a long-distance penalty a handful of minutes from fulltime.
Both teams had attacking opportunities in the final minutes but there was no sufficient time to turn around the Chilean win. With the game seconds from full-time, a deep counterattack down the left touch allowed Nicolás Saabas players to swan dive under the posts; Videla added the goal and the fans exploded.
Samoa, who have featured in every Rugby World Cup since 1991, now have one last chance to reach Australia 2027 via the Final Qualification Tournament in Dubai from 8-18 November. They join Belgium and Namibia with the winner of the Brazil-Paraguay two-leg play-off, set for 11 and 18 October in Asunción and São Paulo, to complete the four-team line-up.
Chile awaits the Rugby World Cup 2027 Draw in December 2025 to learn their pool opponents.
The 11th Men’s Rugby World Cup, hosted in Australia from 1 October to 13 November, 2027, promises a new era for rugby with an expanded 24-team format, six pools of four, and a round of 16, introducing fresh excitement to the competition.
Los Cóndores made their Rugby World Cup debut in 2023 with losses against Japan (42-12), England (71-0), Samoa (43-17), and Argentina (59-5). Despite the results, their vibrant, colorful fans lit up the tournament, a spirit they carried into this qualification campaign.
Under the guidance of coach Pablo Lemoine – a former Uruguay star in 1999 and 2003, and coach of Los Teros in 2015 – Chile has solidified their place in rugby’s elite since he took the helm in 2017.
Also crucial in the rebirth of Chilean rugby was the introduction of Super Rugby Americas, the regional professional competition funded by World Rugby and run by Sudamérica Rugby, where all but two of the 23 players that took the field today, made their entry into high-performance rugby, with Selknam, the Santiago-based franchise.
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George Gregan, an Australian rugby scrum-half, held the record for the most appearances in international rugby, with 139 caps, until being surpassed by Richie McCaw in 2013. Gregan was a key player in Australia’s 1999 Rugby World Cup victory.
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Sport Trivia: Gary player, one of the worlds golfing greats, won a particular major tournament over three different decades, during the \’50s, \’60s, and the 1970s. Which tournament was it? Answer: The British Open. Gary Player won the British Open in 1959, 1968, and 1974. He was also the first non-American golfer to win the US Masters. Player won 163 tournaments all over the world during his career, and was the first South African to win golf\’s Grand Slam of the U.S. Masters, U.S. Open, British Open, and U.S. PGA titles.