ICC Confirms Key Dates for Olympic Qualifiers and Global Cricket Events

The ICC has released an updated calendar covering major international cricket competitions in the years between the 2027 and 2031 ODI World Cups. The schedule includes qualifying tournaments for the men’s and women’s cricket events at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, along with the next World Test Championship final in 2029.

The Olympic qualifying events will be held in January and February 2028, while the WTC final is scheduled to take place in England from June 8 to 12, 2029.

The calendar was sent to cricket boards after the ICC held meetings in Dubai in October. It covers 12 men’s events, seven women’s competitions and five Under-19 tournaments, with Olympic and other qualification events also included.

The ICC first confirmed several major events in 2021. This latest schedule adds more detail about the tournaments planned over the next few years.

The Olympic qualifying events were supposed to take place in 2027 but have been pushed back to January and February 2028, just a few months before the Los Angeles Games.

The ICC has also changed the rules for how the United States, as the host country, can qualify for the women’s Olympic cricket tournament.

Australia, India, South Africa and England have already booked their places in the women’s event. They earned qualification as the highest-ranked eligible teams from their respective continents based on their performances at this year’s T20 World Cup.

For the men’s Olympic tournament, direct places will go to the highest-ranked eligible teams from Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania. The ICC will use its Men’s T20I rankings dated December 31, 2026, to determine which teams qualify.

As the host country, the United States can earn a place in both the men’s and women’s competitions without going through the usual qualification route. However, both teams must meet the ICC’s ranking conditions to take advantage of this provision.

Meanwhile, the ICC has not yet decided where the men’s and women’s Olympic qualifying tournaments will be held. Each event will have eight teams, with seven of the highest-ranked eligible sides outside those already qualified joining the winner of the Caribbean regional qualifier.

Talking about other tournaments, the 2028 men’s and women’s T20 World Cups will take place one after the other, with an 11-day gap between the two events. Pakistan will host the 12-team Women’s T20 World Cup from September 7 to October 1, followed by the 20-team men’s event in Australia and New Zealand from October 12 to November 12.

Meanwhile, the ICC is also planning for the next decade, with England, Ireland and Scotland set to host the 2030 Men’s T20 World Cup. The tournament was initially scheduled for June, but has now been moved to July and August to accommodate key fixtures scheduled before it.