2026 Women's T20 World Cup
| Dates | 12 June – 5 July 2026 |
|---|---|
| Administrator | International Cricket Council |
| Cricket format | Twenty20 International |
| Tournament format(s) | Group stage and Knockout Stage |
| Host(s) | England & Wales |
| Participants | 12 |
| Matches | 33 |
| Official website | t20worldcup |
The 2026 ICC Women's T20 World Cup will be the tenth edition of the Women's T20 World Cup, scheduled to be hosted by the England and Wales Cricket Board. England had previously hosted the inaugural competition in 2009. A total of twelve teams will compete in 33 matches across seven venues.
The number of participants was increased from ten teams to twelve. This will include the host nation, the top five teams from the 2024 edition, the two highest-ranked teams in the ICC Women's T20I Team Rankings not already qualified, and four other teams determined through regional qualifiers. The Netherlands qualified for the women's T20 World Cup for the first time.
New Zealand are the defending champions.
Background
The Women's T20 World Cup is a biennial Twenty20 International (T20I) cricket tournament played by women's national teams and organised by International Cricket Council (ICC). It was first played in 2009 in England, with the 2026 tournament marking its tenth edition.[1] The ninth edition, held in 2024 in the United Arab Emirates, was contested by 10 teams, and was won by New Zealand, who defeated South Africa in the final.[2][3]
Host selection
In July 2022, as part of the 2024–2027 ICC women's hosts cycle, the ICC announced that the 2026 Women's T20 World Cup would be played in England.[4][5] The England and Wales Cricket Board had previously hosted the competition in 2009.[6]
Format
This will be the first time that the competition will be held between 12 teams.[7] The qualifying teams are divided into two groups of six teams; all the six teams in a group play once against each of the other teams in their group–for a total of fifteen matches–and the top two teams in each group advance to the knockout stage.[8]
Qualification
In July 2022, the ICC confirmed the qualification process for the tournament. The hosts, England along with the top five teams from the 2024 edition qualified automatically for the tournament.[9] The remaining automatic qualification spot was taken by the best-ranked team in the ICC Women's T20I Team Rankings which had not already qualified, as of 20 October 2024. The four remaining places were filled via the global qualifier, in which teams advanced from the regional qualifiers. Through the global qualifiers in February 2026, Bangladesh, Irelands, Scotland, and the Netherlands all qualified.[10][11] The Netherlands qualified for the women's T20 World Cup for the first time.[12]
| Method of qualification | No. of teams | Teams | T20I ranking[a] |
|---|---|---|---|
| Host | 1 | England | 2 |
| 2024 Women's T20 World Cup (Top 5 teams from the previous tournament, excluding the host) |
5 | Australia | 1 |
| India | 3 | ||
| New Zealand | 4 | ||
| South Africa | 5 | ||
| West Indies | 6 | ||
| ICC Women's T20I Team Rankings | 2 | Pakistan | 8 |
| Sri Lanka | 7 | ||
| 2026 Women's T20 World Cup Qualifier | 4 | Bangladesh | 10 |
| Ireland | 9 | ||
| Netherlands | 14 | ||
| Scotland | 11 | ||
| Total | 12 |
- ^ The ICC Women's T20I Team Rankings of the respective team in February 2026.
Venues
In May 2025, the England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed the venues that would host the matches.[13] Lord's in London was chosen to host the final, with Old Trafford, Headingley, Edgbaston, Rose Bowl, The Oval and Bristol County Ground hosting other matches in the tournament.[14]
| Birmingham | Bristol | Leeds |
|---|---|---|
| Edgbaston | Bristol County Ground | Headingley |
| Capacity: 25,000 | Capacity: 17,500 | Capacity: 18,350 |
| Matches: 4 | Matches: 6 | Matches: 5 |
| London | Venues in England and Wales | |
| Lord's | The Oval | |
| Capacity: 31,100 | Capacity: 27,500 | |
| Matches: 4 (including the Final) |
Matches: 3 (including Semi-finals) | |
| Manchester | Southampton | |
| Old Trafford | Rose Bowl | |
| Capacity: 26,000 | Capacity: 25,000 | |
| Matches: 5 | Matches: 6 | |
Warm-up matches
On 10 July 2025, International Cricket Council (ICC) confirmed three venues for the warm-up matches.[15] The matches will be played at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff, County Cricket Ground in Derby, and Haslegrave Ground in Loughborough.[16][17]
Group stage
The full fixtures were announced by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on 24 February 2026.[8]
| Group A | Group B |
|---|---|
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | NR | Pts | NRR | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | Advanced to the semi-final |
| 2 | Bangladesh | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 3 | India | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 4 | Netherlands | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 5 | Pakistan | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 6 | South Africa | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Team | Group matches | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| Australia | |||||
| Bangladesh | |||||
| India | |||||
| Netherlands | |||||
| Pakistan | |||||
| South Africa | |||||
| Win | Loss | Tie | No result | Eliminated |
- Note: The total points at the end of each group match are listed.
- Note: Click on the points or results to see the match summary.
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | NR | Pts | NRR | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England (H) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | Advanced to the semi-final |
| 2 | Ireland | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 3 | New Zealand | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 4 | Scotland | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 5 | Sri Lanka | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| 6 | West Indies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Team | Group matches | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| England | |||||
| Ireland | |||||
| New Zealand | |||||
| Scotland | |||||
| Sri Lanka | |||||
| West Indies | |||||
| Win | Loss | Tie | No result | Eliminated |
- Note: The total points at the end of each group match are listed.
- Note: Click on the points or results to see the match summary.
Knockout stage
Bracket
| Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| A1 | |||||||||
| B2 | |||||||||
| SFW1 | |||||||||
| SFW2 | |||||||||
| A2 | |||||||||
| B1 | |||||||||
Semi-finals
Final
References
- ^ Nalwala, Ali Asgar (21 October 2024). "Women's T20 World Cup winners: Australian cricket team's dominance unmatched, New Zealand reigning champions - full list". Olympics. Archived from the original on 24 January 2026. Retrieved 24 January 2026.
- ^ "Amelia Kerr delivers New Zealand's first-ever World Cup title". Cricbuzz. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "History made in Dubai: New Zealand win their first Women's T20 World Cup title". International Cricket Council. 20 October 2024. Retrieved 21 October 2024.
- ^ "India set to host 2025 Women's ODI World Cup". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
- ^ "England to host 2026 T20 Women's World Cup". Sky Sports. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
- ^ "Hosts for ICC Women's global events until 2027 announced" (Press release). International Cricket Council. 26 July 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ^ "Three sub-continent countries set to host ICC events in next cycle". International Cricket Council. 26 July 2022. Retrieved 13 October 2024.
- ^ a b "Full fixtures for ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 unveiled". International Cricket Council. 24 February 2026. Retrieved 25 February 2026.
- ^ "England & Wales to host 2026 Women's T20 World Cup reveals International Cricket Council". BBC Sport. 27 July 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
- ^ "Bangladesh and Netherlands qualify for ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026" (Press release). International Cricket Council. 28 January 2026. Retrieved 11 February 2026.
- ^ "Ireland and Scotland qualify for ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026" (Press release). International Cricket Council. 1 February 2026. Retrieved 11 February 2026.
- ^ "Netherlands, Bangladesh qualify for Women's T20 World Cup 2026". ESPN. 29 January 2026. Retrieved 11 February 2026.
- ^ "Lord's to host final of ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026". England and Wales Cricket Board. Retrieved 30 April 2025.
- ^ "Venues, key dates announced for ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 in England". International Cricket Council. May 2025. Retrieved 1 May 2025.
- ^ "Warm-up venues confirmed for ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026". International Cricket Council. 10 July 2025. Retrieved 30 November 2025.
- ^ "Cardiff, Derby and Loughborough to host warm-up games ahead of ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026". England and Wales Cricket Board. 10 July 2025. Retrieved 30 November 2025.
- ^ "Women's T20 World Cup warm-up games to be played across three venues". Sportstar. 10 July 2025. Retrieved 30 November 2025.
- ^ "Women's T20 World Cup Points Table | Women's T20 World Cup Standings | Women's T20 World Cup Ranking". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
- ^ "Women's T20 World Cup Points Table | Women's T20 World Cup Standings | Women's T20 World Cup Ranking". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 7 October 2024.