By Estea Rademeyer, Sports Journalist.
Photo Credit – Ai Generated.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has approved a long-term schedule of major international tournaments through to 2035, alongside updated qualification pathways for several global events, including the 2028 T20 World Cups and cricket’s return to the Olympic Games at LA28.
The decisions were taken by the ICC Board following its meetings in Bali, Indonesia, on Sunday, with the aim of expanding opportunities for Full and Associate Members, improving access to major competitions and strengthening competitive standards across international cricket.
The approved roadmap provides greater long-term certainty for member associations and players, allowing countries to plan development programmes, high-performance structures and international playing schedules around future global tournaments.
ICC CEO Sanjog Gupta said the events calendar and qualification systems played an important role in shaping the global game, creating meaningful opportunities for players and providing a clear pathway for aspiring cricket nations.
He said the ICC recognised the importance of giving players and member associations greater visibility of future events to support the development of talent pathways, focused high-performance programmes and more structured calendars.
ICC men’s global events calendar through 2035
The ICC Board has approved the schedule windows for its established major men’s tournaments from the 2028 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand through to the 2035 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup.
The confirmed schedule is as follows:
| Tournament | Host country/countries | Dates |
| ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2028 | Australia, New Zealand | 12 October – 12 November |
| ICC World Test Championship Final 2029 | England | 8–12 June |
| ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2029 | India | 9–28 October |
| ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2030 | England, Ireland, Scotland | 4 July – 4 August |
| ICC World Test Championship Final 2031 | England | 12–16 June |
| ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2031 | India, Bangladesh | 9 October – 23 November |
| ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2032 | To be confirmed | 14 October – 14 November |
| ICC World Test Championship Final 2033 | To be confirmed | 9–13 June |
| ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2033 | To be confirmed | 2–23 October |
| ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2034 | To be confirmed | 6 July – 6 August |
| ICC World Test Championship Final 2035 | To be confirmed | 7–11 June |
| ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2035 | To be confirmed | 2 October – 18 November |
The schedule provides a longer-term framework for the ICC’s major men’s competitions, with host venues for several events still to be confirmed.
New qualification details for 2027 and 2028 tournaments
Alongside the global events calendar, the ICC has approved further details concerning qualification for the 2027 Men’s Cricket World Cup and the 2028 Men’s and Women’s T20 World Cups.
10 teams to contest 2027 Men’s World Cup Qualifier
The ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2027 will take place between February and March 2027, featuring 10 teams competing in 23 matches.
The teams will be divided into two groups of five, followed by semi-finals and a final.
The top four teams will qualify for the 2027 Men’s Cricket World Cup. The winner of the qualifier will progress directly to the tournament’s Group Stage, while the other three qualifying teams will compete in the Super Series to determine the remaining Group Stage place.
Eight places available at 2028 Men’s T20 World Cup Global Qualifier
The 16-team Global Qualifier for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2028 is scheduled for the first quarter of 2028.
The competition will consist of 31 matches, with teams divided into four groups of four. The tournament will progress through the group stage, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.
Eight teams will secure qualification for the 2028 tournament.
The highest-ranked eligible team from each region will receive a place, subject to minimum performance requirements, with the remaining qualification spots allocated to the next highest-ranked teams overall.
The ICC has also outlined how regional representation will be determined across the final standings.
All four semi-finalists will qualify, while the four teams eliminated in the quarter-finals will be ranked between fifth and eighth. Their positions will be determined by group-stage position, followed by points, wins and net run-rate.
Teams finishing third in their respective groups will be ranked from ninth to 12th using the same criteria, while those finishing fourth, ranked 13th to 16th, will not be eligible for qualification.
Where a region’s highest-ranked team reaches the semi-finals or finishes as a losing quarter-finalist, that region will already have secured representation.
However, if a region’s highest-ranked team finishes third in its group, it will qualify in place of the lowest-ranked losing quarter-finalist from another region, provided that team is not already the highest-ranked side from its own region.
This process will continue until all eligible regions have representation, with any remaining places going to the highest-ranked losing quarter-finalists.
Women’s T20 World Cup 2028 qualification places
The ICC has also confirmed regional allocations for the Global Qualifier ahead of the 2028 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, following approval of the overall qualification framework in May 2026.
The Netherlands and Scotland, who competed in the 2026 tournament but did not secure automatic qualification for the 2028 edition, will join eight teams emerging from regional qualifying competitions.
Those eight places will be contested through five regional qualification tournaments scheduled for 2027.
Africa, Asia and the East Asia-Pacific region will each receive two qualification places, while the Americas and Europe will each have one.
The 10-team Global Qualifier will therefore feature the Netherlands, Scotland and the eight regional qualifiers, with the top two teams securing the remaining places at the 2028 Women’s T20 World Cup.
ICC confirms Olympic qualification tournaments for LA28
The ICC has also confirmed the hosts and dates for the final qualification events that will determine cricket’s representation at the LA28 Olympic Games.
The ICC Men’s Qualifier will take place in Bangladesh from 5–13 February 2028, followed by the ICC Women’s Qualifier in the United States from 26 February–5 March 2028.
Both competitions will feature eight teams divided into two groups of four, with 13 matches scheduled in each tournament.
Teams will play each of the other sides in their respective groups once, with the two group winners advancing to the final. The winner of each final will secure the final qualification place for the LA28 Olympic Games.
The events will represent the final stage of cricket’s qualification process for its return to the Olympic programme at LA28.
The ICC’s latest decisions establish a long-term framework for international cricket, covering major men’s tournaments, women’s T20 World Cup qualification and the final steps towards Olympic participation in 2028.