The International Cricket Council has approved significant changes to the formats of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup and ICC Men’s T20 World Cup to make every match more competitive and meaningful. The decisions were finalized during the ICC Board’s annual meetings in Edinburgh, where officials endorsed recommendations designed to strengthen tournament structures, improve competitive balance, and deliver a better experience for players and cricket fans.
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The 14-team ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup will now feature a new three-stage format before the knockout rounds begin. Under the revised system, the teams ranked 12th, 13th, and 14th will first compete in a round-robin Super Series, with only the winner advancing to the main event. Afterwards, two groups of six teams will battle for places in a newly introduced Super 7 stage before the top four sides qualify for the semi-finals.
Meanwhile, the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will continue with 20 participating teams but adopt a completely revised competition format to increase excitement throughout the tournament. The opening stage will now feature five groups of four teams instead of four groups of five, while the top two teams from each group will advance to a new Super 10 stage. In addition, a fresh Eliminator round will determine the final two semi-finalists alongside the two group winners.
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Furthermore, the ICC has proposed launching a separate 16-team global tournament exclusively for Associate Member nations to provide them with greater international exposure and stronger competitive opportunities. The proposal still requires final financial and commercial approval later this year, but it reflects the governing body’s commitment to supporting the growth and development of emerging cricket nations across the world.
The Board also approved the qualification pathway for the 2028 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, outlining direct entry for certain teams and a revised regional qualification process. Scotland will enter directly into the Europe Regional Final under exceptional circumstances, while teams from the 2026 T20 World Cup that missed automatic qualification will progress straight to the Global Qualifier. The remaining places will be decided through regional tournaments, with successful teams earning World Cup qualification by meeting the required performance standards.