The 2024 T20 World Cup is underway, but some sides have already started keeping half an eye on the eligibility scenarios of the 2026 edition. Here’s a round-up of the road to qualification for the 2026 T20 World Cup.
ICC’s 108 members will participate in the qualification for the next tournament set to be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka. A total of 20 teams will compete in 55 matches, a format similar to the 2024 edition. While 12 teams will be handed direct tickets to the subcontinent, the remaining eight slots will be filled via sub-regional qualifiers leading to regional finals.
Route to direct qualification
The top two teams from each group in the first round of the T20 World Cup 2024 will make the cut to the next edition. Given Sri Lanka and India are the Full Member hosts for 2026, they are the automatic choices irrespective of their performance. The sides ranked between two and four that don’t make the Super 8 stage will qualify based on their T20I rankings in the top 12 on the day of the T20 World Cup 2024 final on June 29.
Qualification via regional qualifiers
A series of sub-regional qualifiers followed by the regional finals organised by ICC’s five developmental regions – Africa, America, East-Asia Pacific, Europe and Asia will again constitute the 2026 cycle. The first of the sub-regional qualifiers will start in Rome on June 9. Teams that featured in the 2024 edition will head straight to the regional finals.
Asia, Africa, and Europe will have two qualifying slots out of these eight, with East Asia Pacific and the Americas getting one each.
T20 World Cup 2026 qualification spots
Hosts: 2 teams (India and Sri Lanka)
Top 8 teams from T20 World Cup 2024 edition
Two highest-ranked ICC T20 teams after above ten sides
Europe Qualifiers: 2
Asia Qualifiers: 2
Africa Qualifiers: 2
East Asia-Pacific Qualifier: 1
Americas Qualifier: 1
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