DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday confirmed a structural overhaul for the men’s World Cup 2027, set to be held in South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe.
The changes decided in the ICC annual general meeting held in Scotland could lead to more India-Pakistan fixtures. Both teams only face each other in ICC events and Asia Cups, as they do not play in a bilateral series due to geopolitical tensions.
According to a press release, the ICC Board, comprising three representatives from associate nations, approved the changes.
“The ICC Board, comprising three representatives from associate nations, approved the recommendations it received from the Chief Executives’ Committee (comprising Chief Executives & representatives from full & associate members) related to the formats of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup,” the press release said.
As per the revised structure for the 50-over Men’s World Cup, the three qualifying teams in 12th to 14th place will play the Super Series round. From these three teams, one will advance to the main Group round.
The mega event will remain a 14-team tournament, with the remaining four teams to be decided by a global qualifier. The qualifier is currently scheduled to be a 10-team event contested between the next two highest-ranked teams, four teams from the World Cup Cricket League 2 and four teams from a qualifier playoff.
In the main round, the top three teams from each group, along with the fourth best-ranked team across both groups, will then qualify for the Super 7.
The top four teams from the Super 7 will proceed to the semifinals.
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Previously, in the 2019 and 2023 editions, two groups of seven teams had faced each other, resulting in a Super 6 stage before a semi-final and final.
The decision comes after concerns over too many dead rubbers and the creation of more meaningful contests and overall strengthening of the competitive structure of both ICC events.
Meanwhile, the final structure of the tournament and the number of fixtures will be confirmed during the ICC meeting in October, where the next Future Tour Programme (FTP) will also be finalised.
According to the ICC, the tournament will have 10 automatic qualifiers — two Full-member co-hosts, South Africa and Zimbabwe, and the eight top-ranked teams in the ODI rankings. The cut-off for those rankings is September 2026.
The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2028 will be held in Australia and New Zealand, and it will continue to be a 20-team tournament.
The noticeable changes are an increase in the number of teams in the second stage of the tournament, which will increase the number of emerging teams in the Super 10 stage.
In the group stage, the teams will now be split into five groups of four, with the top two teams advancing to the Super 10 stage. Previously, four groups of five teams were in place in the 2026 T20 World Cup.
The Super 10 round (round-robin format) will have two groups of five teams, with the winner of each group directly qualifying for the semi-finals.
The remaining two teams for the semi-final will be decided through a new Eliminators round, with the second-best-ranked team from each Super 10 group facing the third-placed teams from the opposite group, completing the semi-final lineup.
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