The 1999 Rugby World Cup qualifying was held in several continental zones. Four countries qualified automatically—Wales as tournament hosts, South Africa as reigning champions, New Zealand as runners-up in the previous tournament, and France as winners of the third-place playoff in the previous tournament. Repechage was first introduced for the 1999 competition qualifying.[1][2][3]
Only the tournament hosts, as well as the two finalists and the third-place winner from the previous Rugby World Cup, were automatically qualified for the 1999 Rugby World Cup.
