Cricket's New T20 World Cup Format: What Changes in 2028

Dr. Annelies De Vos · 2026-07-16

The International Cricket Council just approved a major shake-up for the Men's T20 World Cup, starting with the 2028 edition. Australia and New Zealand will co-host the tournament, and while the number of teams stays at 20, how they advance through the competition is getting a complete overhaul. ### Group Stage Shifts to Five Groups of Four In 2026, organizers split 20 teams into four groups of five. Starting in 2028, they'll use five groups of four teams instead. That means 30 group-stage matches instead of the previous setup. The top two teams from each group still move forward, which keeps the door open for smaller cricket nations to qualify. ICC officials pointed to strong performances from emerging teams at the 2026 event as a key reason for keeping that access open. It's a smart move because it rewards growth in the sport without making the path too easy. ### Super 10 Stage Replaces Super Eights, Adds Eliminators Here's where it gets interesting. Ten teams advance into a new Super 10 stage, arranged in two groups of five. They play round-robin matches, totaling 20 games. Only the winner of each group earns a direct spot in the semi-finals. But the second- and third-placed teams don't go home immediately. Instead, they enter a newly created Eliminators round. The second-placed team from one Super 10 group plays the third-placed team from the other group. Two such matches decide the remaining semi-final berths. This adds pressure and consequence to matches that, under the old format, carried less weight once the top two spots were effectively locked in. Semi-finals and the final continue under the existing structure. ### Qualification Pathway Set for 2028 Tournament Twelve teams have already locked in their places for 2028 based on their 2026 results and current rankings: - Afghanistan - Australia - Bangladesh - England - India - Ireland - New Zealand - Pakistan - South Africa - Sri Lanka - West Indies - Zimbabwe Scotland receives a direct entry into the Europe Regional Final, a decision the ICC attributes to the unusual circumstances of their 2026 qualification, which came after Bangladesh withdrew from the tournament. Eight other teams that competed in 2026 without securing automatic 2028 qualification move straight into the Global Qualifier: - Canada - Italy - Namibia - Nepal - Netherlands - Oman - United Arab Emirates - United States The remaining eight Global Qualifier places will be filled through regional events. Two spots each come from Africa, Asia, and Europe, and one spot each from the Americas and East Asia-Pacific. Once the Global Qualifier concludes, the highest-ranked team from each region qualifies automatically, joined by the next three highest-placed teams overall, provided they meet minimum performance requirements. ### What This Means for Fans and Teams For fans, this format change means more high-stakes matches. The Eliminators round creates drama that wasn't there before. For teams, especially smaller nations, the path to the semi-finals is clearer but tougher. You can't just cruise into the top two and relax. > "The new format rewards consistency and adds excitement throughout the tournament," said an ICC spokesperson. The ICC Development Committee and the ICC Chief Executives' Committee recommended these changes, and the ICC Board has since endorsed them. The format still needs final sign-off from the ICC Finance & Commercial Affairs Committee, which meets in November. The changes come alongside a separate revamp of the Men's Cricket World Cup format, also approved during the ICC's annual meetings in Edinburgh this month. So cricket fans have plenty to look forward to in the coming years.