Two Pool D teams who won their opening fixtures of the Rugby World Cup 2023 meet in what promises to be a fascinating tussle on Sunday evening in the form of England vs Japan. The 2003 winners have had an up-and-down year thus far but are determined to put together another positive showing in rugby's biggest tournament, while the 2019 hosts have more than half an eye on an upset after reaching the knockout stages four years ago. Rearrange anything in your diary and make sure you're in front of a screen for this one.
The local weather in Nice is set fair for the evening, which should hopefully bring about a good game of rugby. Click onto your live stream now so you don't miss any of the action.
The teams for this fixture show just how evenly poised this game could be and are listed below...
ENGLAND Freddie Steward; Jonny May, Joe Marchant, Manu Tuilagi, Elliot Daly; George Ford, Alex Mitchell; Joe Marler, Jamie George, Kyle Sinckler; Maro Itoje, Ollie Chessum; Courtney Lawes (captain), Ben Earl, Lewis Ludlam
Replacements: Theo Dan, Ellis Genge, Will Stuart, George Martin, Billy Vunipola, Ben Youngs, Marcus Smith, Ollie Lawrence
JAPAN Semisi Masirewa; Kotaro Matsushima, Tomoki Osada, Ryoto Nakamura, Jone Naikabula; Rikiya Matsuda, Yutaka Nagare; Keita Inagaki, Shota Horie, Jiwon Gu; Jack Cornelsen, Amato Fakatava; Michael Leitch, Pieter Labuschagne, Kazuki Himeno (captain)
Replacements: Atsushi Sakate, Craig Millar, Asaeli Ai Valu, Warner Dearns, Kanji Shimokawa, Naoto Saito, Dylan Riley, Lomano Lemeki
England vs Japan in the Rugby World Cup is airing for FREE in the UK today, on the ITVX streaming service. But don't worry if you're abroad while the games are playing, because you can watch the Rugby World Cup 2023 live streams on ITVX from anywhere with a VPN.
► Date: Sunday, September 17
► Time: 3 pm ET / 12 pm PT / 8 pm BST / 5 am AEST (Sep. 18)
US: Peacock
UK: ITV1 | ITVX (both free with license fee)
AU: Stan Sport
Stream anywhere: ExpressVPN
The biggest question mark hanging over England at the moment is whether they're capable of finishing an international with 15 men on the pitch. In three of the Red Rose's past four fixtures, one of their number has been sent off, Tom Curry becoming the latest to see yellow upgraded to red in the backs-to-the-wall 27-10 defeat of Argentina in their opening pool game. Both Curry and captain Owen Farrell will be absent through suspension, but talismanic number eight Billy Vunipola may return to the starting XV after recovering from injury. George Ford will again get the fly-half jersey after kicking every point a week ago as England played with a man less for 77 minutes, but Steve Borthwick's much-maligned side know that belligerence must now be allied with some attacking verve if they're to really compete at this tournament.
Japan reached the quarter-finals as hosts four years ago, beating Ireland and Scotland en route, and Kiwi head coach Jamie Joseph will be desperate to continue that pedigree in France. The Brave Blossoms shipped an early try to Rugby World Cup debutants Chile a week ago, but recovered to record a bonus point 42-12 victory and top Pool D after the opening round of fixtures. Tongan-born Amato Fakatava crossed the whitewash twice, while fellow flanker Michael Leitch continues to defy his age as he closes in on the all-time Japanese appearance record. The Japanese struggled to match the Chilean physicality at times and must prepare themselves for another onslaught against a big England pack, to go with redoubtable center Manu Tuilagi. They've done this before, though, so never count out those Brave Blossoms.
Whether you're planning to catch an England vs Japan live stream or watch the entire Rugby World Cup on your TV or your laptop, keep reading for your entire list of options. We've also included lots of useful information below so you know when the matches take place, who will play, and where this evening's drama will go down.
How to watch England vs Japan in the UK for free
In the UK, ITV is the exclusive broadcaster for the 2023 Rugby World Cup, so you'll be able to watch England vs Japan – and all the games – on one of the various ITV-branded channels. You'll be able to watch this game on ITV1, with coverage beginning at 7:15 pm ahead of the 8 pm kick-off.
If you don't have a TV, then you'll be able to use ITVX on your computer, phone, tablet or smart TV, as that lets you live stream from ITV channels.
ITV1 and ITVX are free to watch for license fee payers. If you're trying to access the streaming platform while outside the UK, you might want to try a VPN to allow you to watch from abroad.
How to watch England vs Japan in the US
Thanks to a partnership between World Rugby and NBC Sports, the broadcasting company will be the exclusive home for the Rugby World Cup games – including England vs Japan, which will be streamed live on Peacock. The match kicks off at 3 pm ET / 12 pm PT.
You can sign in to Peacock, which starts at $5.99 per month for ad-enabled streaming or $11.99 for ad-free, and it's showing all of the Rugby World Cup games too.
Remember, if you're away from the US at the minute, you'll need a VPN to ensure you can still watch the England vs Japan live stream without being geo-blocked. Keep reading on to find out how to get yourself set up.
How to watch England vs Japan in Australia
In Australia, you've got two options for watching the Rugby World Cup. Firstly, online streaming service Stan Sport will be showing every single game – including England vs Japan. The match kicks off on Monday, September 18 at 5 am AEST.
Beyond this fixture, Channel Nine will be showing all of the Australian team's games (and the final, whether or not the Wallabies make it), and will also be streaming it on 9Now.
Not in Australia right now? Make sure you get yourself a VPN to ensure you don't miss a second of the England vs Japan live stream from the Rugby World Cup 2023.
How to watch England vs Japan everywhere else
Wherever you live, there's a good possibility that a national broadcaster is streaming the Rugby World Cup matches, particularly if your country has a team playing in the tournament.
However, there's a possibility that there's no easy way of watching Six Nation games. Thankfully, you can solve this issue with a Virtual Private Network (a VPN).
A VPN lets you get around the usual digital barriers by changing your IP address, meaning you can watch events like the Rugby World Cup 2023 tournament even if it is not directly broadcasting where you are. Our favorite is ExpressVPN, which is the No. 1-rated VPN in the world right now according to our sister site, TechRadar.
How to use a VPN to watch any stream
- Download the app at ExpressVPN
- Choose the location of the streaming service you want to watch.
- Navigate to the streaming service and start watching!
Rugby World Cup 2023 fixtures
Group stage
Saturday, September 16
Group B: Ireland vs Tonga
Group C: Wales vs Portugal
Group D: Samoa vs Chile
Sunday, September 17
Group B: South Africa vs Romania
Group C: Australia vs Fiji
Group D: England vs Japan
Wednesday, September 20
Group A: Italy vs Uruguay
Thursday, September 21
Group A: France vs Namibia
Friday, September 22
Group D: Argentina vs Samoa
Saturday, September 23
Group B: South Africa vs Ireland
Group C: Georgia vs Portugal
Group D: England vs Chile
Sunday, September 24
Group B: Scotland vs Tonga
Group C: Wales vs Australia
Wednesday, September 27
Group A: Uruguay vs Namibia
Thursday, September 28
Group D: Japan vs Samoa
Friday, September 29
Group A: New Zealand vs Italy
Saturday, September 30
Group B: Scotland vs Romania
Group C: Fiji vs Georgia
Group D: Argentina vs Chile
Sunday, October 1
Group B: South Africa vs Tonga
Group C: Australia vs Portugal
Thursday, October 5
Group A: New Zealand vs Uruguay
Friday, October 6
Group A: France vs Italy
Saturday, October 7
Group B: Ireland vs Scotland
Group C: Wales vs Georgia
Group D: England vs Samoa
Sunday, October 8
Group B: Tonga vs Romania
Group C: Fiji vs Portugal
Group D: Japan vs Argentina
Knockout stage
Saturday, October 14
QF1: Group C winner vs Group D runner-up
QF2: Group B winner vs Group A runner-up
Sunday, October 15
QF3: Group D winner vs Group C runner-up
QF4: Group A winner vs Group B runner-up
Friday, October 20
SF1: QF1 winner vs QF2 winner
Saturday, October 21
SF2: QF3 winner vs QF4 winner
Friday, October 27
Bronze Final: SF1 loser vs SF2 loser
Saturday, October 28
Final: SF1 winner vs SF2 winner
Rugby World Cup 2023 questions
Where does the Rugby World Cup take place?
The Rugby World Cup 2023 is being hosted by France, with nine different locations around the country hosting rugby games:
- Stade de Framce in Saint-Denis, capacity 80,698
- Stade Vélodrome in Marseille, capacity 67,394
- Stade Lyon-Décines in Décines-Charpieu, capacity 59,186
- Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Villeneuve-d'Ascq, capacity 50,186
- Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux in Bordeaux, capacity 42,115
- Stade Geoffroy-Guichard in Saint-Étienne, capacity 41,965
- Stade de Nice in Nice, 35,624
- Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes, capacity 35,322
- Stadium Municipa in Toulouse, capacity 33,150
Which teams are in the Rugby World Cup?
There are 20 teams partaking in the Rugby World Cup, with each split into four groups of five in the first stage of the tournament.
Chile makes its debut to the tournament this year, knocking out the United States and Canada in its successful qualification tournament.
Group A
New Zealand
France
Italy
Uruguay
Namibia
Group B
South Africa
Ireland
Scotland
Tonga
Romania
Group C
Wales
Australia
Fiji
Georgia
Portugal
Group D
England
Japan
Argentina
Samoa
Chile
