The seedings for the 2019 Rugby World Cup are set to be decided on the world ranking of teams in 2017 rather than 2016.

According to The Scotsman, World Rugby are likely to take into account results in 2017 when confirming the seedings for the tournament in Japan.

This will be a boost for Ireland, who are currently ranked number seven in the world in danger of slipping out of the top eight.

Joe Schmidt’s side face a tricky three-Test tour of South Africa in the summer before taking on the world champions New Zealand in two fixtures in November.

They also have a Test match against Australia in Dublin, and with just one other fixture in 2016 - a home Test against Canada - could feasibly tumble down the rankings list.

If Ireland were to drop out of the world’s top eight then it could have a detrimental effect on their 2019 hopes, and leave them vulnerable to being placed in a pool of death in Japan.

However World Rugby’s decision to count results in 2017 will benefit Ireland as it would include some eminently more winnable fixtures, including next year’s Six Nations.

Seedings are likely to be taken after the Six Nations or the 2017 autumn international window, with Ireland, England, Wales and Scotland setto be significantly weakened on their summer tours with a number of players selected to represent the Lions.

The World Rugby Council are set to formally decide when the seedings will be made at their annual meeting on May 11th.

They have confirmed to the Irish Times the seedings will be decided later than they were four years ago. The seedings for England 2015 were made three years before the tournament started.