The 2027 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup will be played in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia from 2 October to 21 November 2027. Fourteen teams will take part under a new three-round format, and the final is at Johannesburg on 21 November. India open their group campaign against defending champions Australia in Cape Town on 7 October, then face Pakistan in Johannesburg three days later.
2027 World Cup at a glance
| Detail | 2027 World Cup |
|---|---|
| Dates | 2 October to 21 November 2027 |
| Hosts | South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia |
| Teams | 14 |
| Venues | 12 (8 in South Africa, 3 in Zimbabwe, 1 in Namibia) |
| Format | Super Series, two groups of six, Super 7, semi-finals, final |
| Final | Johannesburg, 21 November 2027 |
| Defending champions | Australia (won 2023 in India) |
The new format, round by round
The ICC confirmed a revised format in July 2026. It replaces the original plan for two groups of seven and gives the lowest-ranked teams an extra round to play through.
Round 1: Super Series
The three lowest-ranked of the 14 teams play each other once. Only the winner goes through to the group stage. The tournament starts on 2 October.
Round 2: two groups of six (30 matches)
The Super Series winner joins the other 11 teams in two groups of six, with every team playing the others in its group once. The top three in each group, plus the better of the two fourth-placed teams, go through. That makes 30 matches in this round.
Round 3: Super 7 (21 matches)
The seven teams that survive play each other once in a single table. The top four reach the semi-finals, where first plays fourth and second plays third. The winners meet in the final in Johannesburg.
The ICC said it designed the structure to create more meaningful contests and raise competitive standards. Associate nations criticised the late change, calling it a setback for Associate cricket.
Teams qualified so far
Ten of the 14 places are filled. The two full-member hosts qualify automatically, and the top eight teams in the ICC Men’s ODI rankings at the 30 September 2026 cut-off went through directly.
| Team | How they qualified |
|---|---|
| South Africa | Co-host |
| Zimbabwe | Co-host |
| India | ODI ranking |
| Australia | ODI ranking |
| England | ODI ranking |
| New Zealand | ODI ranking |
| Pakistan | ODI ranking |
| Sri Lanka | ODI ranking |
| Bangladesh | ODI ranking |
| Afghanistan | ODI ranking |
The last four places go to the Cricket World Cup Qualifier. West Indies, ranked 10th, could not climb into the top eight in time and must go through the Qualifier, as they did before the 2023 tournament, when they failed to reach the World Cup for the first time. Namibia, the third co-host, does not qualify automatically either.
India’s group and fixtures
India are in Group A with Australia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, co-hosts Zimbabwe and a team still to come through qualifying.
| Date | Match | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| 7 October 2027 | India vs Australia | Cape Town |
| 10 October 2027 | India vs Pakistan | Johannesburg |
| 24 October 2027 | India vs Zimbabwe | Victoria Falls |
The opening fixture is a rematch of the 2023 final, which Australia won in Ahmedabad. Only the top three in each group are sure of a Super 7 place, so a defeat to Afghanistan or Zimbabwe could leave India relying on the best fourth-place spot.
Key dates
- 30 September 2026: ODI rankings cut-off for direct qualification (passed).
- 2 October 2027: tournament starts with the Super Series.
- 7 October 2027: India vs Australia, Cape Town.
- 10 October 2027: India vs Pakistan, Johannesburg.
- 24 October 2027: India vs Zimbabwe, Victoria Falls.
- 21 November 2027: final, Johannesburg.
The dates of the semi-finals and the Super 7 fixtures depend on which teams qualify. The full schedule is on the ICC website.
Venues
The tournament uses 12 grounds across the three host countries:
- South Africa (8): Cape Town, Paarl, Johannesburg, Tshwane, Bloemfontein, Durban, KuGompo City and Gqeberha.
- Zimbabwe (3): Harare, Bulawayo and Victoria Falls, where the new Mosi-oa-Tunya Stadium will host matches.
- Namibia (1): Windhoek.
South Africa and Zimbabwe last co-hosted a men’s World Cup in 2003, with Kenya, when Australia beat India in the final in Johannesburg.
How 2027 compares with 2023
| 2023 (India) | 2027 (South Africa, Zimbabwe, Namibia) | |
|---|---|---|
| Teams | 10 | 14 |
| Group format | Single round-robin of 10 | Super Series, two groups of six, Super 7 |
| Knockouts | Semi-finals and final | Semi-finals and final |
| Champions | Australia | To be decided |
The bigger field gives more nations a place at the World Cup, while the Super 7 keeps a league stage between the leading sides before the knockouts. For India, it means at least five group matches and potentially six more in the Super 7 before a semi-final.
Defending champions: Australia
Australia won the 2023 World Cup in India, beating the hosts by six wickets in the final at Ahmedabad after Travis Head’s century. India had won all ten of their matches before the final. It was Australia’s sixth title, the most by any team.
Previous World Cup winners
| Year | Hosts | Winners |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | India | Australia |
| 2019 | England and Wales | England |
| 2015 | Australia and New Zealand | Australia |
| 2011 | India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh | India |
| 2007 | West Indies | Australia |
| 2003 | South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya | Australia |
| 1999 | England | Australia |
| 1996 | India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka | Sri Lanka |
| 1992 | Australia and New Zealand | Pakistan |
| 1987 | India and Pakistan | Australia |
| 1983 | England | India |
| 1979 | England | West Indies |
| 1975 | England | West Indies |
India have won twice, in 1983 and 2011. Their last final was the 2023 defeat to Australia.
Follow India’s Test results in the meantime on our WTC points table 2025-27 page.
KhelGossip’s view: India’s danger games are not Australia and Pakistan
The India vs Australia and India vs Pakistan fixtures will get the attention, but under this format they are not the games that decide whether India go through. Only the top three in each group are sure of a Super 7 place. Lose to Afghanistan or Zimbabwe, and India could be relying on being the better fourth-placed team.
Afghanistan have beaten bigger sides at World Cups before, and Zimbabwe will be playing at home in Victoria Falls. Those are the matches India should treat as knockouts.
We also think the ICC’s late change to the format is hard on the Associate nations. Moving from two groups of seven to a qualifying Super Series means three of the smallest teams play one round each before most of the tournament starts, and only one goes on. A 14-team World Cup was meant to give those teams more top-level cricket, not less.
Updated 7 October 2026. Sources: ICC fixture and format announcements, and The National (Reuters) on qualification.
