The International Cricket Council (ICC) has approved a sweeping redesign of its two flagship events – the 2027 men’s ODI World Cup and the 2028 men’s T20 World Cup. In a meeting held in Edinburgh, Scotland, the governing body voted to replace the traditional group‑stage format with a series of high‑stakes phases that aim to eliminate early‑round “meaningless” games.

New Structure for the 2027 ODI World Cup

The tournament will open with a Super Series involving the teams ranked 12th, 13th and 14th in the ICC standings. This three‑team round‑robin mini‑league will produce only one qualifier for the main event; the other two sides will be eliminated immediately. The surviving team joins eleven pre‑qualified nations in the main draw, which will be split into two groups of six. Each group will play a total of 30 matches, with the top three sides from each group advancing directly. The best‑performing fourth‑place side across both groups will also qualify, creating a pool of seven teams for the next phase – the Super 7 round. In Super 7, all seven teams face each other once (21 matches), and the top four in a combined points table move on to the semi‑finals.

New Format for the 2028 T20 World Cup

The 20‑team T20 tournament will be reshaped into five groups of four, reducing the group‑stage matches from 40 to 30. The top two teams from each group will progress to a Super 10 stage, where they will be re‑divided into two groups of five. The group winners will earn direct semi‑final berths. The remaining four semi‑final spots will be decided through an IPL‑style Eliminator series: the second‑place team from Group A will face the third‑place team from Group B, and vice‑versa. Winners of these two eliminators will claim the last two semi‑final slots, ensuring that even teams finishing third in their Super 10 groups remain in contention.

Why the Change?

ICC officials argue that recent world cups suffered from a surplus of “dead‑rubber” matches that had little impact on the tournament outcome. By making every game a potential qualifier, the board hopes to heighten fan interest, increase broadcasting value, and give associate nations more opportunities against top‑tier opponents.

Looking Ahead

Cricket analysts suggest that if the new formats deliver the promised excitement, the ICC could replicate the model across other global events, including women’s world cups and multi‑sport competitions like the Asian Games. Moreover, domestic leagues may be inspired to adopt similar eliminator phases to keep their playoffs more unpredictable.