| Dates | February – March 2026 |
|---|---|
| Administrator(s) | International Cricket Council |
| Cricket format | Twenty20 International |
| Tournament format(s) | Group stage and knockout |
| Host(s) |  India  Sri Lanka |
| Participants | 20 |
| Matches | 55 |
| Official website | t20worldcup |
The 2026 ICC Men's T20 World Cup will be the tenth edition of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, a biennial Twenty20 International (T20I) tournament played by men's national teams and organized by International Cricket Council (ICC). It is scheduled to be hosted by India and Sri Lanka in February and March 2026.[1][2]
The tournament will be contested by 20 teams like the previous edition. The two hosts nation and the top 8 teams from the previous edition will automatically qualified for the tournament, next two teams in the ICC Men's T20I Team Rankings will also qualify for the tournament. The remaining eight teams were decided via a regional qualification process.
Format
The 20 qualifying teams will be divided into four groups of five; the top two teams in each group will advance to the Super 8 round.In this stage, the qualifying teams will be split into two groups of four; the top two teams from each group will qualify for the knockout stage, which will consist of two semi-finals and a final.
Host selection
In November 2021, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced that India and Sri Lanka will co-host the 2026 ICC Men's T20 World Cup. This will be the second time for both India and Sri Lanka that they will host a T20 World Cup.[3] Sri lanka firstly hosted the T20 World Cup in 2012 and India in 2016. The Eden Gardens stadium in Kolkata is planning to bid to host the 2026 T20 World Cup Final. The stadium is undergoing renovations to improve its fatalities and capacity. The work is expected to be completed by 2026 before starting of the world cup.
Teams and qualifications
India and Sri Lanka will directly qualify for the tournament as co-hosts, they will be joined by the top eight teams from the previous edition who get qualified automatically, the best two teams (other than the ones already qualified) from the ICC Men's T20I Team Rankings will also qualify for the tournament. Remaining eight teams will be decided by regional qualifiers, consisting of two teams from Africa, Asia, and Europe[4][5][6] along with one team each from Americas and East Asia-Pacific regions.[7][8]
| Means of qualification | Date | Venues | Teams | Qualified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hosts | 16 November 2021 | — | 2 | India Sri Lanka |
| 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup
(Top 8 teams from the previous tournament) |
29 June 2024 |  United States West Indies |
8 | |
| ICC Men's T20I Team Rankings | — | — | 2 | |
| Europe Qualifier | — | — | 2 | |
| East Asia-Pacific Qualifier | — | — | 1 | |
| Americas Qualifier | — | — | 1 | |
| Asia Qualifier | — | — | 2 | |
| Africa Qualifier | — | — | 2 | |
| Total | 20 |
References
- ↑ "T20 World Cup to return to Asia in 2026". TIMES NOW. Retrieved 17 August 2022.
- ↑ "USA to stage T20 World Cup: 2024-2031 ICC Men's tournament hosts confirmed". www.icc-cricket.com. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
- ↑ "India to host 2026 T20 World Cup with Sri Lanka, 2031 ODI World Cup with Bangladesh". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
- ↑ "Italy will host ICC Men's T20 World Cup Europe Sub-regional qualifier A". czarsportzauto.com. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Germany to host ICC Men's T20 World Cup Europe Sub-regional qualifier B". czarsportzauto.com. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Guernsey to host ICC Men's T20 World Cup Europe Sub-regional qualifier C". bbc.com. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "South Korea to host ICC Men's T20 World Cup East Asia-Pacific Sub-regional Qualifier A". czarsportzauto.com. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
- ↑ "Samoa to host ICC Men's T20 World Cup East Asia-Pacific Sub-regional Qualifier B". czarsportzauto.com. Retrieved 2 January 2024.