2003 Rugby World Cup – European qualification

There were a number of positions open to European nations to qualify for the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia. Ireland, Romania, Georgia and Italy, joining a number of other nations that automatically qualified.

Round 1 (2000–2001)
The 18 teams that entered qualification at this stage were divided into three pools of six teams each. The winners of each pool and the best runner-up advanced to the second round of qualifying.

Round 2 (2001–2002)
The four teams that qualified from Round 1 were joined by the six teams from the European Nations Cup Second Division. They were divided into two pools of five teams each. Each pool was played as a single round-robin tournament, and the winner of each pool advanced to Round 3.

Round 3 (May–June 2002)
The two teams that advanced from Round 2 were joined by the four lowest-ranked teams from the 2000–01 European Nations Cup First Division. The six teams were divided into two pools of three teams each, again played as a single round-robin, with the winners of each pool advancing to Round 4.

Round 4 (September–October 2002)
In Round 4, the two teams that advanced from Round 3 were joined by the two remaining teams from the 2000–01 European Nations Cup First Division, as well as Ireland and Italy. The six teams were divided into two pools of three teams each, which were again played as a single round-robin. The top two teams from each pool qualified directly for the Rugby World Cup, while the bottom team from each pool advanced to Round 5.

Pool A
Italy qualified for the Rugby World Cup as Europe 2 and were placed in Pool D, while Romania qualified as Europe 3 and were placed in Pool A.

Pool B
Ireland qualified for the Rugby World Cup as Europe 1 and were placed in Pool A, while Georgia qualified as Europe 4 and were placed in Pool C.

Round 5 (October–November 2002)
The two teams that advanced from Round 4 played a two-legged tie. The winners advanced to the repechage.

''Russia won 58–41 on aggregate. However, after it was determined they used ineligible South African players, they were ejected from the competition and Spain advanced to Repechage.''