The ICC Board has approved the windows for the established major men's events until 2035, following its meetings in Bali, Indonesia. The announcement, published on Sunday, 15 November, covers the Men's Cricket World Cup, the Men's T20 World Cup, the Men's Champions Trophy and the World Test Championship final. The ICC also confirmed the qualification formats for the 2027 World Cup, the 2028 T20 World Cups and cricket's return to the Olympics at LA28.

It is the biggest set of decisions to come out of the ICC's final round of board and committee meetings for 2026, which ran from 11 to 15 November in Bali. The windows give every member board a confirmed calendar for the next decade, and the qualification announcements settle how teams will reach the next three global events.

The tournament windows through 2035

The confirmed schedule runs from the Men's T20 World Cup 2028 in Australia and New Zealand, which takes place from 12 October to 12 November 2028, up to the Men's Cricket World Cup 2035. The T20 World Cup will next be held in 2030, with England co-hosting it with Scotland and Ireland from 4 July to 4 August, and the following editions are slated for 2032 and 2034, with the venues yet to be decided.

After next year's Men's Cricket World Cup in southern Africa, the tournament returns to the sub-continent, with India and Bangladesh co-hosting from 9 October to 23 November 2031. The following edition in 2035 has also been confirmed, and is slated to take place in the October-November period, with the hosts yet to be confirmed.

The World Test Championship Final will continue as a biennial fixture in June until 2035. England will host the 2029 and 2031 editions, while the hosts are to be confirmed for 2033 and 2035. The Men's Champions Trophy will take place in India from 9 to 28 October 2029, with the subsequent edition also taking place in October in 2033.

ICC CEO Sanjog Gupta said the confirmed calendar matters for the whole game:

The ICC events portfolio and schedule are critical components of cricket's global architecture and deliver elevated context, competitiveness and consequence to the ecosystem. These tournaments serve as pinnacle moments for fans and players alike, with the associated pathways driving aspiration and access for the broader cricketing landscape.

We also recognise the importance of providing athletes and member associations long-term visibility of these events to enable development of improved player pathways, focused high-performance programmes and structured calendars.

As of now, Australia hold the Men's Cricket World Cup, South Africa have the World Test Championship mace, while India are the holders of both the Men's T20 World Cup and the Men's Champions Trophy.

The 2027 World Cup qualifier

The ICC also confirmed the format for the Men's Cricket World Cup 2027 Qualifier, which will be held in February and March 2027. Ten teams will face off for the final four spots in the World Cup. Six sides have already booked their place in the Qualifier: West Indies, Ireland, Netherlands, Oman, Scotland and the USA. The other four teams will qualify through the Qualifier Playoff, to be held in Nepal from 4 to 21 December, with Nepal, Italy, Namibia, Uganda, Kuwait, Canada, Jersey and the United Arab Emirates taking part.

The ten teams in the Qualifier will be divided into two groups of five. The round-robin group stage will be followed by a semi-final and a final, with the top four teams qualifying for the World Cup. The winner of the Qualifier progresses directly to the World Cup Group Stage, while the three remaining teams will compete in the Super Series to determine the final Group Stage spot. In total, the Qualifier will have 23 games.

The 2027 World Cup is a 14-team event, co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. Hosts South Africa and Zimbabwe qualified automatically, and a further eight teams earned their spots through the ICC Men's ODI Rankings at the cut-off date on 30 September 2026: Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

The road to the 2028 T20 World Cups

The ICC also set out the qualification pathways for the 2028 T20 World Cups. For the men's event, the 16-team Global Qualifier will be played in the first quarter of 2028, featuring 31 matches across four groups of four, with a group stage, quarter-finals, semi-finals and a final. Eight teams will qualify directly. All four semi-finalists secure their spots automatically, and every region — Africa, Americas, Asia, East-Asia Pacific and Europe — must have its highest-placed team qualify, subject to minimum performance criteria. If a region's top team finishes ninth to 12th, they take the spot of the lowest-ranked team in the top eight that is not a regional top team. Any leftover berths go to the highest-ranked losing quarter-finalists based on group performance, points, wins and net run-rate, and the lowest-ranked teams in their groups are not eligible to qualify.

For the Women's T20 World Cup 2028, Australia, India, South Africa, Bangladesh, England, West Indies, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Ireland and hosts Pakistan have qualified automatically. The remaining two places will be decided through the Women's T20 World Cup Qualifier 2028, which will feature 10 teams. Netherlands and Scotland, who played in the 2026 tournament without securing automatic qualification for 2028, will progress directly to the Global Qualifier, where they will be joined by eight teams advancing through five regional qualification events scheduled for 2027. The top two teams from the Global Qualifier will secure the final places.

Cricket's Olympic return at LA28

The ICC also confirmed the hosts and dates for the final qualification events for cricket's return to the Olympics at LA28. The men's qualifier will take place from 5 to 13 February 2028 in Bangladesh, before the women's Olympic qualifier, which will run from 26 February to 5 March 2028 in the USA. Each qualifier will feature eight teams spread across two groups of four, with 13 matches. Each team will play the other teams in their group once, with the group winners progressing to the final, and the winners of the final will secure the final qualification berth for LA28.

Four teams have already qualified for the women's Olympics after finishing as the top-ranked sides in their regions: India (Asia), Great Britain (Europe), Australia (Oceania) and South Africa (Africa). Six teams will compete in each of the men's and women's competitions, as cricket returns to the Olympic programme after a period of 128 years.

What was not decided

One big item from the Bali agenda still has no official announcement. The future of the World Test Championship was discussed at the board meeting, and reports ahead of the meeting expected the board to keep the nine-team format for the 2027-29 and 2029-31 cycles, leaving Zimbabwe, Ireland and Afghanistan outside the competition. But no official ICC announcement on the WTC format had been published at the time of writing. The franchise-league review, discussed by the Chief Executives' Committee on Saturday, was also before the Board, and no official announcement on that had been published either.

FAQs

What did the ICC approve in Bali?

The windows for the major men's events through 2035 — the T20 World Cups, the Cricket World Cups, the Champions Trophy and the World Test Championship Finals — plus the qualification formats for the 2027 World Cup, the 2028 T20 World Cups and the LA28 Olympics.

When is the next T20 World Cup?

12 October to 12 November 2028, in Australia and New Zealand. The following edition will be held in England, Ireland and Scotland from 4 July to 4 August 2030.

How does the 2027 World Cup qualifier work?

Ten teams play in February and March 2027, in two groups of five, with a semi-final and a final. The top four teams qualify for the World Cup. Six teams are already in, and four more will come through the playoff in Nepal from 4 to 21 December.

How do teams qualify for the LA28 Olympics?

Through final qualifiers in early 2028 — the men's event in Bangladesh from 5 to 13 February and the women's event in the USA from 26 February to 5 March. The winner of each final takes the last berth in the six-team Olympic tournaments.

Has the ICC decided on expanding the World Test Championship?

Not officially at the time of writing. Reports ahead of the Bali meeting expected the nine-team format to be retained for the 2027-29 and 2029-31 cycles, but no official ICC announcement on the WTC format had been published.

Conclusion

The Bali meetings have given cricket a confirmed calendar for the next decade. The tournament windows through 2035, the 2027 World Cup qualifier format, the 2028 T20 World Cup pathways and the LA28 Olympic qualifiers are all settled — and the road to the 2027 World Cup starts in earnest in Nepal in December. The one question still open is the World Test Championship's future, and that answer is still to come.

Also on CricVic: Justin Sammons resigns as Zimbabwe head coach after the Afghanistan Test

Also on CricVic: Live Matches Today: Cricket Schedule, 15 November 2026

Sources: ICC — ICC approves window for major men's tournaments till 2035, ICC — Path to 2027 World Cup: Qualifier format confirmed, ICC — The road to 2028 T20 World Cups takes shape, ICC — How teams can qualify for LA28, ESPNcricinfo — WTC set to stay nine-team contest till 2031