On the eve of International Women’s Day, exactly a year after the thumping success of the ICC Women’s World T20, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the expansion of women’s cricket events post the 2023 cycle.
At present, eight and 10 teams compete in ICC Women’s World Cup and ICC Women’s World T20 respectively. The expansion will mean that more teams will be included to compete in both the aforementioned tournaments from 2026 onwards. This endeavor is a part of the ICC’s long-term commitment to growing the game globally and in a sustainable fashion.
ICC Women’s Tournaments
2023-2031 :Cricket WC –
2025- 8 teams, 31 Mts
2029- 10 teams, 48 MtsT20 WC –
2024- 10 teams, 23 Mts
2026- 12 teams, 33 Mts
2028- 12 teams, 33 Mts
2030- 12 teams, 33 MtsT20 Champions Cup –
2027- 6 teams, 16 Mts
2031- 6 teams, 16 Mts#Cricket— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) March 8, 2021
The revised formats will give more teams the chance to compete on the global stage and importantly provides Members with a window to grow the game domestically to challenge internationally as the changes take place.
ICC has announced to expand the participation of teams in ICC World Cup Events. 🏆
👉12 teams to play in Women’s @T20WorldCup from 2026
👉10 teams in Women’s @cricketworldcup from 2029#InternationalWomensDay #WomensDay pic.twitter.com/CXTwoOAXoy— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) March 8, 2021
Manu Sawhney, ICC Chief Executive said, “We have a clear focus and commitment to an ambitious long-term growth plan for the women’s game. We have been building momentum around the women’s game for the last four years investing in global broadcast coverage and marketing to drive fan engagement. The results speak for themselves with the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 attracting record numbers, 1.1 billion video views, making it the most-watched women’s cricket event of all time and having 86,174 fans attending the final at the MCG, a record attendance for a women’s cricket event. This decision to expand our women’s events builds on these foundations and allows us to give more member countries greater opportunities to compete on a global stage. This means that more teams will also get the opportunity to compete in the qualification pathways for the respective ICC events over the coming years. I am sure these initiatives will go a long way in helping us achieve our strategic goal of continuing to build strength and depth in the women’s game.”
The revised structure will be as follows:
| Events | Year | Format |
| ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup | 2025
2029 |
8 teams, 31 matches
10 teams, 48 matches |
| ICC Women’s T20 World Cup | 2024
2026 2028 2030 |
10 teams, 23 matches
12 teams, 33 matches 12 teams, 33 matches 12 teams, 33 matches |
| ICC Women’s T20 Champions Cup | 2027
2031 |
6 teams, 16 matches |
The article was first published on ICC website
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I am a former cricketer having represented Mumbai University at All India University level. I was a part of MCA probables for the U-19 and U-23 age group. I have been an avid cricket writer for the last five years. Currently I am pursuing my Ph.D from IIT Bombay.
