Zimbabwe, runners-up to Namibia in the African qualifying tournament, face a daunting trek to Siberia to take on Russia in Krasnoyarsk, while Uruguay will host Hong Kong in Montevideo.

The match in Krasnoyarsk will be refereed by Nigel Owens of Wales,one of the world's leading officials, while on the same day Federico Anselmi of Argentina will be in charge in the Uruguayan capital.

The winners of the two repechage semi-finals will then take part in a two-legged playoff, scheduled for September 27 or 28, and October 11 or 12.

The eventual winner will be placed in Pool A for next year's showpiece event where they will face hosts and 2003 champions England, along with two-time winners Australia, Wales and Fiji.

Russia appeared at their first Rugby World Cup four years ago in New Zealand, while Zimbabwe took part in the 1987 and 1991 tournaments.

Hong Kong have also yet to make their bow in the competition, while Uruguay qualified for the 1999 and 2003 editions.

The International Rugby Board (IRB) will stream both matches live via its website.

The match in Krasnoyarsk is due to start at 7pm local time (noon British Summer Time), while the Uruguay versus Hong Kong game starts at 3.45pm local time (5.45pm BST).

Hong Kong travel to Uruguay on their quest for qualification for next years Rugby World Cup ©Getty Images



"The road to Rugby World Cup is reaching its finale and, for the four teams participating this weekend, the dream of playing at our pinnacle tournament lives on," said IRB chairman Bernard Lapasset.

"Only one team will qualify and I am looking forward to two very intense and compelling matches in Siberia and Montevideo.

"By its conclusion, 3,000 players from 83 teams across six continents will have taken part in a record-breaking Rugby World Cup 2015 qualification process featuring 203 matches.

"As such, there is a clear pathway for all IRB Member Unions towards the game's most important tournament."

A total of 48 matches will be held during next year's tournament, due to take place from September 18 to October 31 across 13 venues in England and Wales.

A total of 20 teams will take part including defending champions New Zealand who are joined in Pool C by Argentina, Tonga, Georgia and Namibia, who secured their place as African qualifying winners earlier this month.

Two-time winners South Africa head Pool B along with Samoa, Scotland, Japan and the United States.

Pool D features two-time runners up France who are up against Ireland, Italy, Canada and Romania.

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