The ICC has announced the schedule for the 2028 Olympic cricket qualifiers and the 2029 WTC final, confirming dates for major global cricket events occurring between the 2027 and 2031 ODI World Cups for men, women, and Under-19 categories.
ICC Announces Olympic Cricket Qualifiers and WTC Final Schedule
The men’s and women’s cricket qualifiers for the Los Angeles Olympics 2028 are scheduled to be held in January and February 2028, while the World Test Championship (WTC) final in 2029 will take place in England from June 8 to 12, according to the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) latest global events calendar. The dates feature in a schedule shared by the ICC with its member boards following meetings in Dubai in October.
The calendar outlines 12 men’s, seven women’s and five Under-19 events, including qualifiers, between the 2027 and 2031 ODI World Cups, according to Cricinfo. The Olympic qualifiers were initially scheduled for 2027 but have now been moved to early 2028, less than six months before the Los Angeles Games, where cricket will return to the Olympic programme for the first time since 1904.
Olympic Qualification Criteria and US Eligibility
While the qualification structure for the six-team men’s and women’s Olympic competitions was outlined earlier this year, the ICC has updated the criteria governing direct entry for hosts the United States in the women’s event. In the women’s category, Australia, India, South Africa and Great Britain have secured qualification as the highest-ranked eligible teams from their respective continents, based on their performances at the T20 World Cup earlier this year.
In the men’s category, the top-ranked eligible teams from Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania, according to the ICC T20I rankings as of December 31, 2026, will secure direct qualification. The United States are eligible to participate in both events as hosts, subject to meeting the ICC’s ranking criteria. The US men’s team, currently ranked 13th, are on course to meet the requirement of being in the top 15 during the qualification period from June 30 to December 31, 2026.
However, the US women’s team, currently ranked 19th, are at risk of missing out on direct entry under the updated criteria. The ICC had earlier stated that if the US women’s team failed to meet the ranking requirement, an additional automatic qualification place would be awarded to the highest-ranked eligible team outside the existing qualifiers, based on the T20I rankings as of March 1, 2027. The revised criteria instead link the additional berth to the inaugural Women’s Champions Trophy, scheduled to be held in India in February 2027. “If the host (USA) does not meet the ranking criteria by 31 Dec 2026, that spot is reallocated based on the ICC Women’s Champions Trophy 2027 standings (cut-off 1 March 2027),” the ICC said in its communication to member boards.
Tournament Structure and Future Events
The venues for the men’s and women’s Olympic qualifiers are yet to be finalised. Each tournament will feature eight teams, comprising the seven highest-ranked sides outside the automatic qualifiers and the winner of the Caribbean Regional Qualifier.
The ICC calendar also confirms that the women’s and men’s T20 World Cups in 2028 will be staged consecutively, with an 11-day gap between the two tournaments. The 12-team Women’s T20 World Cup in Pakistan is scheduled to run from September 7 to October 1, while the 20-team Men’s T20 World Cup, to be hosted by Australia and New Zealand, will take place from October 12 to November 12.
The ICC has also shifted the window for the 2030 Men’s T20 World Cup from June to July-August. England, Ireland and Scotland are scheduled to host the 20-team tournament. Several major events had already been allocated to host nations by the ICC in 2021, while the latest calendar provides dates for additional tournaments as the governing body continues to finalise its international schedule through 2031.
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