The draw for the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand will be held in London on December 1 and will be based for the first time on current world rankings.

Tournament chief executive Martin Snedden said on Friday that the 20 teams competing in the tournament will be divided in four pools of five with the top 12 teams at the time of the draw earning automatic qualification.

"For the first time ... the seedings and the pools will be constructed around the use of the IRB (International Rugby Board) world rankings, the 12 automatically qualified teams will be banded together and the pools will be constructed from that," Snedden said.

The cutoff point for rankings will be midnight November 30, following the match between New Zealand and England at Twickenham.

"I think this is something that, because it is new and because it has an air of unpredictability about it, will capture the attention of the international rugby media and will create a lot of excitement," said Snedden.

The tournament will be the seventh Rugby World Cup since 1987 and the second, after the inaugural event, to be held in New Zealand.

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