The International Cricket Council (ICC) has approved major structural overhauls to its flagship men’s tournaments, introducing highly anticipated formats for both the ODI and T20 World Cups starting in 2027. Ratified at the ICC Board’s annual meetings in Edinburgh following recommendations from the Chief Executives’ Committee, the revamped formats are strategically designed to elevate competitive standards, increase match significance from the opening stages, and deliver a vastly improved experience for fans and players. While the 2027 Men’s ODI World Cup will retain its 14-team capacity, it will transition into a dynamic three-stage layout prior to the knockouts. The tournament will commence with a round-robin “Super Series” featuring the three lowest-ranked qualified teams (Teams 12, 13, and 14), with the winner advancing to Round 2 to join the remaining 11 teams. These 12 nations will then be divided into two groups of six for a round-robin phase. The top three teams from each group, alongside the next highest-placed team across both groups, will progress to a single round-robin “Super 7” stage, where the top four teams will ultimately secure semi-final berths.
Simultaneously, the 20-team Men’s T20 World Cup is set for a significant overhaul, replacing its traditional group structures with a highly competitive “Super 10” format. The opening phase will now feature five groups of four teams, with the top two teams from each group qualifying for the newly expanded Super 10 stage. This second phase will consist of two groups of five, where the top-ranked team in each group advances directly to the semi-finals. To intensify the concluding matches of the Super 10, the second and third-placed teams from opposing groups will face off in two high-stakes eliminator matches to decide the final semi-finalists. Alongside these changes, the ICC officially signed off on a new global competition for associate nations and established a revamped qualification pathway for the 2028 Men’s T20 World Cup, securing regional final spots and Global Qualifier structures to guarantee emerging nations a transparent route to the sport’s biggest stages.