The ICC T20 World Cup 2026 which is scheduled to be hosted by India and Sri Lanka, will take place before the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, reportedly between February 7 and March 8. India's five venues and two venues from Sri Lanka will host the mega event.
Cricinfo reported that the mega event will take place from February to March next year and the title decider will take place at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad or Colombo, depending on whether Pakistan is playing. India and Pakistan are not playing in each other's countries due to border tensions between the neighbouring nations.
According to a report by ESPNcricinfo, the ICC has finalised the window for the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup and has already informed the participating nations. This edition of the tournament will feature 20 teams, with 15 of them already confirmed. The teams that have qualified so far include India, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, South Africa, the USA, West Indies, New Zealand, Pakistan, Ireland, Canada, the Netherlands, and Italy. Italy will be making their debut in a T20 World Cup, after making a historic qualification. The remaining five spots will be filled from regional qualifiers; two teams will come from the Africa regional qualifier, while three will qualify from the Asia and East Asia Pacific region.
The format for the 2026 tournament will remain the same as the 2024 T20 World Cup, which was co-hosted by the USA and the West Indies. 20 participating teams in the mega event will be divided into four groups of five. The top two teams from each group advanced to the Super Eight stage, where they were again split into two groups of four. The top two teams from each of those groups then moved on to the semi-finals. India, who are the reigning champions, won the 2024 edition by defeating South Africa in the final, which was played in Barbados. The upcoming tournament will feature a total of 55 matches, following the same structure.
India will have a packed cricket calendar in the first few months of 2026. The season will start with the Women’s Premier League (WPL), though the exact dates are yet to be announced. After that, the T20 World Cup will be held from February 7 to March 8, co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka, with matches scheduled across multiple venues in both countries.
After the T20 World Cup 2024, the BCCI is expected to host the Indian Premier League (IPL), with a tentative window from March 15 to May 31. Before all of this, India will host New Zealand for a white-ball series consisting of ODIs and T20Is, scheduled to take place between January 11 and 31.