ICC announces full schedule for U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2026, confirms no India-Pakistan clash in the Group Stage

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ICC announces full schedule for U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2026, confirms no India-Pakistan clash in the Group Stage
A detailed view of the ICC U19 Men's Cricket World Cup trophy prior to the ICC U19 Men's Cricket World Cup

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Under-19 World Cup is scheduled to start from January 15

India will start their Under-19 World Cup campaign against USA.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) have announced the schedule for the upcoming edition of the U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2026, which will take place from 15 January to 6 February 2026. The last edition of the tournament was played in 2024. The format of the mega event will remain the same, with 16 teams divided into groups of four in the first stage. 41 matches will be played in the tournament over 23 days.

Group Distribution for teams in the Under-19 World Cup

Teams featuring in the mega event will arrive on January 8 and will play warm-ups from 9-14 January. Here are the group distribution for the mega event. 

Group A: India, Bangladesh, USA and New Zealand. 

Group B: Zimbabwe, Pakistan, England, and Scotland.

Group C: Australia, Ireland, Japan, and Sri Lanka

Group D: Tanzania, West Indies, Afghanistan, and South Africa

The opening day of the 16-team tournament sees India take on USA, Zimbabwe go up against Scotland, and Tanzania take on the West Indies. Japan who featured in the tournament back in 2020, made their comeback, and Tanzania will feature for the first time. Here's the full schedule. 

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GROUP-STAGE MATCHES (15–24 January 2026)

Date Team 1 vs Team 2 Venue
Thu, 15 Jan USA vs India Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Thu, 15 Jan Zimbabwe vs Scotland Takashinga Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Thu, 15 Jan Tanzania vs West Indies HP Oval, Namibia
Fri, 16 Jan Pakistan vs England Takashinga Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Fri, 16 Jan Australia vs Ireland Namibia Cricket Ground, Namibia
Fri, 16 Jan Afghanistan vs South Africa HP Oval, Namibia
Sat, 17 Jan India vs Bangladesh Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Sat, 17 Jan Japan vs Sri Lanka Namibia Cricket Ground, Namibia
Sun, 18 Jan New Zealand vs USA Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Sun, 18 Jan England vs Zimbabwe Takashinga Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Sun, 18 Jan West Indies vs Afghanistan HP Oval, Namibia
Mon, 19 Jan Pakistan vs Scotland Takashinga Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Mon, 19 Jan Sri Lanka vs Ireland Namibia Cricket Ground, Namibia
Mon, 19 Jan South Africa vs Tanzania HP Oval, Namibia
Tue, 20 Jan Bangladesh vs New Zealand Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Tue, 20 Jan Australia vs Japan Namibia Cricket Ground, Namibia
Wed, 21 Jan England vs Scotland Takashinga Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Wed, 21 Jan Afghanistan vs Tanzania HP Oval, Namibia
Thu, 22 Jan Zimbabwe vs Pakistan Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Thu, 22 Jan Japan vs Ireland Namibia Cricket Ground, Namibia
Thu, 22 Jan West Indies vs South Africa HP Oval, Namibia
Fri, 23 Jan Bangladesh vs USA Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Fri, 23 Jan Sri Lanka vs Australia Namibia Cricket Ground, Namibia
Sat, 24 Jan India vs New Zealand Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe

How teams will qualify for Super Six phase

The league stage will be followed by the Super Six phase, wherein the top three-ranked sides from the aforementioned groups will be divided into two groups of six.

SUPER SIX / PLACEMENT MATCHES (24 January – 1 February 2026)

Date Team vs Team Venue
Sat, 24 Jan A4 vs D4 HP Oval, Namibia
Sun, 25 Jan S6 AD A1 vs D3 Namibia Cricket Ground, Namibia
Sun, 25 Jan S6 AD A2 vs D2 HP Oval, Namibia
Mon, 26 Jan S6 BC C1 vs B2 Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Mon, 26 Jan S6 AD D1 vs A2 Namibia Cricket Ground, Namibia
Tue, 27 Jan S6 BC C2 vs B3 Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Tue, 27 Jan S6 AD C3 vs A3 Harare Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Wed, 28 Jan S6 AD A3 vs D1 Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Thu, 29 Jan S6 BC C3 vs B1 Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Thu, 29 Jan S6 AD B3 vs D2 Harare Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Fri, 30 Jan S6 AD A3 vs D3 Harare Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Fri, 30 Jan S6 BC B3 vs C3 Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Sat, 31 Jan S6 BC B2 vs C2 Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Sun, 1 Feb S6 BC B1 vs C2 Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe

The knockout stage will follow, comprising two semi-finals and a final. and there will be a reserve day for both semifinals and the title decider. 

KNOCKOUT STAGE

Date Match Teams Venue
Tue, 3 Feb Semi-Final 1 AD1 vs BC2 Queens Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Wed, 4 Feb Semi-Final 2 BC1 vs AD2 Harare Sports Club, Zimbabwe
Fri, 6 Feb FINAL Harare Sports Club, Zimbabwe

Venues for the Under-19 World Cup

Harare Sports Club (Harare, Zimbabwe), Takashinga Sports Club (Harare), Queens Sports Club (Bulawayo, Zimbabwe), Namibia Cricket Ground (Windhoek, Namibia), and HP Oval (Windhoek) will host the fifty-over tournament.