The 2023 Rugby World Cup was held in France from 8 September to 28 October 2023. Twenty teams qualified and each named an initial squad of 33 players, two more than at the previous World Cup. Squads were submitted before the tournament, and replacement players could be added during the tournament on injury grounds.[1]
Note: The age and number of caps listed for each player is as of 8 September 2023, the first day of the tournament.
New Zealand announced their squad on 7 August 2023.[2]
1 On 10 September 2023, Emoni Narawa was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a back injury. He was replaced in the New Zealand squad by Ethan Blackadder.[3]
Head coach: 
Ian Foster
France announced their squad on 21 August 2023.[4]
1 On 1 September 2023, Paul Willemse was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a thigh injury. He was replaced in the France squad by Bastien Chalureau[5]
Head coach: 
Fabien Galthié
Italy announced their squad on 22 August 2023.[6]
1 On 24 September 2023, Luca Bigi was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a leg injury. He was replaced in the Italy squad by Marco Manfredi.[7]
Uruguay announced their final squad on 21 August 2023.[8]
Head coach: 
Esteban Meneses
Namibia announced their squad on 28 August 2023.[9]
1 On 6 September 2023, Chad Plato was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a thigh injury. He was replaced in the Namibia squad by TC Kisting.[10]
2 On 17 September 2023, Le Roux Malan was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining an ankle injury. He was replaced in the Namibia squad by Lloyd Jacobs.[11]
Head coach: Allister Coetzee
South Africa announced their squad on 8 August 2023.[12]
1 On 14 September 2023, Malcolm Marx was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a knee injury.[13] He was replaced in the South Africa squad by Handré Pollard.[14]
2 On 2 October 2023, Makazole Mapimpi was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a fractured eye socket.[15] He was replaced in the South Africa squad by Lukhanyo Am.[16]
Ireland announced their final squad on 27 August 2023.[17]
Head coach: Andy Farrell
Scotland announced their squad on 16 August 2023.[18]
1 On 14 September 2023, Dave Cherry was ruled out of the World Cup, after a concussion injury. He was replaced by Stuart McInally.[19]
2 On 24 September 2023, Stuart McInally was replaced by Johnny Matthews, after a neck injury.[20]
Head coach: Gregor Townsend
Tonga announced their final squad on 21 August 2023.[21]
1 On 18 September 2023, Feao Fotuaika and Otumaka Mausia were ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining various injuries. They were replaced in the Tonga squad by Siate Tokolahi and Patrick Pellegrini.[22]
2 On 29 September 2023, Siua Maile and Solomone Funaki were ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining various injuries. They were replaced in the Tonga squad by Sione Anga'aelangi and Penitoa Finau.[23]
Head coach: 
Toutai Kefu
Romania announced their squad on 16 August 2023.[24]
1 On 28 August 2023, Mihai Macovei, Mihai Mureșan and Paul Popoaia were replaced by André Gorin, Sioeli Lama and Taliaʻuli Sikuea due to injuries.[25]
2 On 19 September 2023, Romania replaced Gabriel Pop, Taylor Gontineac and Hinckley Vaovasa with Luca Nichitean, Mihai Graure and Alexandru Bucur because of various injuries.[26]
Head coach: 
Eugen Apjok
Wales announced their final squad on 21 August 2023.[27]
1 On 7 October 2023, Taulupe Faletau was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a broken arm.[28] He was replaced in the Wales squad by Kieran Hardy.[29]
Head coach: Warren Gatland
Australia announced their final squad on 10 August 2023.[30]
1 On 21 September 2023, Max Jorgensen was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a broken leg.[31]
Head coach: Eddie Jones
Fiji announced their squad on 8 August 2023.[32]
1 On 1 September 2023, Caleb Muntz was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a knee injury.[33] He was replaced in the Fiji squad by Vilimoni Botitu.[34]
2 On 25 September 2023, Jone Koroiduadua was ruled out of the Rugby World Cup, after sustaining an injury. He was replaced in the Fiji squad by Emosi Tuqiri.[35]
3 On 11 October 2023, Temo Mayanavanua was ruled out of the Rugby World Cup, after sustaining an injury. He was replaced in the Fiji squad by Api Ratuniyarawa.[36]
Head coach: Simon Raiwalui
Georgia announced their final squad on 28 August 2023.[37]
1 On 27 September 2023, Beka Gorgadze was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining an ankle injury. He was replaced in the Georgia squad by Otar Giorgadze. Later that day, Luka Japaridze left the Georgia squad, after sustaining a back injury. He was replaced by Irakli Aptsiauri.[38]
2 On 2 October 2023, Tengiz Zamtaradze, Mirian Modebadze and Lasha Jaiani were ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining various injuries. They were replaced in the Georgia squad by Vano Karkadze, Otar Lashkhi and Mikheil Babunashvili.[39]
Head Coach: 
Levan Maisashvili
Portugal announced their final squad on 28 August 2023.[40]
Head coach: Patrice Lagisquet
England announced their initial squad on 7 August 2023.[41]
1 On 14 August 2023, Jack van Poortvliet was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining an ankle injury. He was replaced in the England squad by Alex Mitchell.[42]
2 On 27 August 2023, Anthony Watson was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a calf injury.[43] He was replaced in the England squad by Jonny May.[44]
3 On 5 October 2023, Jack Willis was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a neck injury.[45] He was replaced in the England squad by Sam Underhill.[46]
Head coach: Steve Borthwick
On 15 August 2023, Japan named an initial 30-player squad for the m World Cup, with three players remaining to be added.[47] On 18 August 2023, Warner Dearns, Amanaki Saumaki, and Lappies Labuschagné were added to complete the 33-player squad.
1 On 18 August 2023, James Moore was replaced by Uwe Helu.[48]
2 On 29 August 2023, Uwe Helu and Shōgo Nakano were withdrawn due to performance issues, and replaced m by Amato Fakatava and Kanji Shimokawa.[49]
3 On 19 September 2023, Semisi Masirewa was replaced, after a leg injury, by Ryohei Yamanaka.[50]
Head Coach: Jamie Joseph
Argentina announced their final squad on 7 August 2023.[51]
1 On 22 August 2023, Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining an injury. He was replaced in the Argentina squad by Mayco Vivas.[52]
2 On 27 August 2023, Santiago Grondona was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining an injury. He was replaced in the Argentina squad by Joaquín Oviedo.[53]
3 On 9 October 2023, Pablo Matera was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a hamstring injury. He was replaced in the Argentina squad by Lucas Paulos.[54]
Head coach: Michael Cheika
Samoa announced their final squad on 28 August 2023.[55]
1 On 18 September 2023, Luteru Tolai was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining a knee injury.[56] He was replaced in the Samoa squad by Ray Niuia.[57]
Head coach: Seilala Mapusua
Chile announced their final squad on 27 August 2023.[58]
1 On 8 September 2023, Nicolás Garafulic was ruled out of the World Cup, after sustaining an injury. He was replaced in the Chile squad by Cristóbal Game Jiménez.[59]
Head coach: Pablo Lemoine
All statistics relate to the initial 33-man squads named before the start of the tournament on 8 September 2023, and do not include players who joined a squad during the tournament.
A total of 142 different clubs are represented across the 660 players named for the World Cup.
The club sides with the most players represented across the 20 squads are as follows:
| Players | Clubs |
|---|---|
| 28 | Selknam |
| 21 | Peñarol |
| 20 |  Benetton |
| 19 | Moana Pasifika |
| 18 | Leinster |
| 17 |  Fijian Drua / Toulouse |
| 16 | Edinburgh |
| 15 | Black Lion / Glasgow Warriors |
| 13 | Saracens /  Saitama Wild Knights |
| 11 | La Rochelle / Toulon |
| League | Players | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Total | 660 | — |
| United Rugby Championship (/ / / /) | 132 | 20.0% |
| Top 14 () | 106 | 16.0% |
| Super Rugby ( / / ) | 106 | 16.0% |
| Premiership Rugby | 64 | 9.6% |
| Japan Rugby League One () | 50 | 7.6% |
| Super Rugby Americas (/) | 49 | 7.4% |
| Pro D2 () | 32 | 4.8% |
| Liga Națională de Rugby () | 24 | 3.6% |
European Professional Club Rugby ( /  ) | 17 | 2.6% |
| Campeonato Português de Rugby | 16 | 2.4% |
| Championnat Fédéral Nationale / Fédérale 1, 2, 3 () | 14 | 2.1% |
Major League Rugby ( ) | 10 | 1.5% |
Other ( / / / /  / /  / / /  /) | 31 | 4.7% |
| Unattached | 9 | 1.4% |
| Union | Players | Percent | Other national squad |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 660 | — | — |
| Argentina | 1 | 0.2% | 0 |
| Australia | 32 | 4.9 | 3 |
| Chile | 30 | 4.6% | — |
| England | 64 | 9.7% | 36 |
| Fiji | 17 | 2.6% | — |
| France | 155 | 23.5% | 122 |
| Georgia | 16 | 2.4% | — |
| Ireland | 37 | 5.6% | 5 |
| Italy | 28 | 4.2% | 6 |
| Japan | 50 | 7.6% | 17 |
| Namibia | 9 | 1.4% | — |
| New Zealand | 57 | 8.6% | 24 |
| Portugal | 16 | 2.4% | — |
| Romania | 24 | 3.6% | 1 |
| Samoa | 2 | 0.3% | — |
| Scotland | 31 | 4.7% | 3 |
| South Africa | 24 | 3.6% | 7 |
| Uruguay | 25 | 3.8% | — |
| Wales | 23 | 3.5% | 3 |
| Other | 0 | 0.0% | 13 |
| Unattached | 7 | 1.1% | — |
The age for each player listed below is their age on 8 September 2023, the day that the World Cup begins.
| Nation | Avg. Age | Oldest player | Youngest player |
|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 28 | Agustín Creevy | Pedro Rubiolo |
| Australia | 25 | James Slipper | Max Jorgensen |
| Chile | 27 | Pablo Huete | Lukas Carvallo |
| England | 28 | Danny Care | Henry Arundell |
| Fiji | 27 | Levani Botia | Sireli Maqala |
| France | 27 | Uini Atonio | Louis Bielle-Biarrey |
| Georgia | 27 | Alexander Todua | Tornike Kakhoidze |
| Ireland | 29 | Johnny Sexton | Joe McCarthy |
| Italy | 27 | Federico Zani | Lorenzo Pani |
| Japan | 29 | Shōta Horie | Warner Dearns |
| Namibia | 28 | P. J. van Lill | Oela Blaauw |
| New Zealand | 27 | Dane Coles | Cam Roigard |
| Portugal | 27 | Francisco Fernandes | Simão Bento |
| Romania | 27 | Florin Surugiu | Mihai Mureșan |
| Samoa | 29 | Charlie Faumuina | Miracle Faiʻilagi |
| Scotland | 28 | WP Nel | Ollie Smith |
| South Africa | 30 | Duane Vermeulen | Canan Moodie |
 Tonga | 29 | Siegfried Fisi'ihoi | Kyren Taumoefolau |
| Uruguay | 26 | Matías Benítez | Santiago Álvarez |
| Wales | 28 | Dan Lydiate | Dafydd Jenkins |
| Nation | Caps | data-sort-type="number" | Most capped player | data-sort-type="number" | Least capped player |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 1524 | ||||
| England | 1476 | ||||
| Argentina | 1454 | ||||
| South Africa | 1369 | ||||
| Ireland | 1332 | ||||
| Wales | 1297 | ||||
| Georgia | 1246 | ||||
| Scotland | 1037 | ||||
| Uruguay | 1019 | ||||
| Portugal | 840 | ||||
| France | 835 | ||||
| Italy | 746 | ||||
| Romania | 681 | ||||
| Australia | 668 | ||||
| Japan | 660 | ||||
| Chile | 575 | ||||
| Namibia | 563 | ||||
| Tonga | 407 | ||||
| Fiji | 374 | ||||
| Samoa | 297 | ||||
| Player | RWC Matches |
|---|---|
| Sam Whitelock | 19 |
| James Slipper | 18 |
| George North | 16 |
| Dan Cole | 15 |
| Agustín Creevy | |
| Keith Earls | 14 |
| Ben Youngs | |
| Damian de Allende | 13 |
| Eben Etzebeth | |
| Michael Leitch | |
| Conor Murray | |
| Handré Pollard | |
The following players selected for a 2023 Rugby World Cup squad represented a different nation at a previous World Cup:[60]
| Player | Nation at previous World Cup | Nation at current World Cup | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charlie Faumuina | New Zealand (2015) | Samoa (2023) | [61] |
| Malakai Fekitoa | New Zealand (2015) | Tonga (2023) | [62] |
| Adam Coleman | Australia (2019) | Tonga (2023) | [63] |
| Jack Dempsey | Australia (2019) | Scotland (2023) | [64] |
| Jean Kleyn | Ireland (2019) | South Africa (2023) | [65] |
| Christian Leali'ifano | Australia (2019) | Samoa (2023) | [66] |