ICC Reveals New ODI and T20 World Cup Formats Full Format Changes

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has introduced new formats for its two biggest men’s tournaments, the ODI World Cup and the T20 World Cup, adding extra rounds to both events.

The changes were announced after the ICC’s annual meetings in Edinburgh. According to the governing body, the revised formats aim to create more meaningful matches, raise the level of competition, improve the structure of both tournaments and provide a better experience for players and fans.

New Changes in Men’s ODI World Cup

The tournament will feature 14 teams. The previous two editions in 2019 and 2023 were played with 10 teams, while the last 14-team ODI World Cup was held in 2015.

The competition will now be held in four stages, with a new round-robin Super Series being introduced in Round 2 before the group stage.

The teams ranked 12, 13 and 14 will participate in Round 1. The top team will advance to Round 2 along with the remaining 11 teams.

There will be two groups of 6 teams in Round 2. The top 3 teams from both groups, along with the next best team from each of the 2 groups, will advance to the round-robin Super 7.

The previous Super 6 stage has now been replaced by Super 7, which will determine the 4 teams that will reach the semi-finals. According to the ICC, the aim is to make each match more important and more competitive. In this stage, all 7 teams will play against each other, even if they have already met in the previous round. For example, if India and Pakistan are drawn in the same Round 2 group and both reach the Super 7, they will face each other once again.

The top 4 teams from the Super 7 will advance to the semi-finals, which will be played as follows:

Team 1 vs 4
Team 2 vs 3

A total of 57 matches will be played in the 2027 edition, which is 9 more than the previous tournament.

New Changes in Men’s T20 World Cup

One of the biggest changes to the Men’s T20 World Cup is that the second stage has been increased from 8 teams to 10. This will give more emerging teams a chance to advance in the tournament.

The tournament will begin with the 20 teams divided into 5 groups of 4 teams, up from 5 teams in the previous format.

The top 2 teams from each group will qualify for the next stage. The Super 8 stage will pave the way for the Super 10, which will have 2 groups of 5 teams.

Another big change is that the first-placed team in each group will directly qualify for the semi-finals, while the second-placed team from one group and the third-placed team from the other group will play 2 IPL-style eliminator matches.

The winners of the 2 eliminators will then join the group winners in the semi-finals, followed by the final.

Also Read: Smriti Mandhana Says She Is Ready for India Women’s Captaincy

Updates for Qualification Structure in Men’s T20 World Cup 2028

The qualification pathway for the 2028 Men’s T20 World Cup has also been revised. Scotland, who replaced Bangladesh ahead of the 2026 edition, will qualify directly for the Europe Regional Finals.

The remaining teams that participated in the 2026 tournament but failed to qualify directly for 2028 will have to progress through the Global Qualifiers.

The other 8 places in the Global Qualifiers will be determined through regional qualifiers in Africa, Asia, Europe, the Americas and East Asia Pacific.

The highest ranked team from each region, along with the next best 3 teams, will qualify for the 2028 T20 World Cup and join the 12 teams that automatically qualified, making a total of 20 teams.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has approved major changes to the format of its men’s global tournament, aimed at making every match more competitive and meaningful. The ICC has approved the changes following recommendations from the Development and Chief Executive Committee, and final approval will be given only after a review by the ICC Finance and Commercial Affairs Committee in November this year.

The revised format is expected to make both World Cups more competitive by adding additional stages and creating more meaningful matches across the tournament. If approved in November, the changes will come into effect from the 2027 ODI World Cup and the 2028 Men’s T20 World Cup.

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