Countdown to T20 World Cup 2026 Begins With 20 Teams Confirmed

ByAnupam Pandey,SportsCafe Editor

Yesterday at 2:15 PM

The countdown for the T20 World Cup 2026 World Cup officially starts now. With the tournament expected to start from the first week of February, all teams are locked in. Again, the tournament will have 20 teams, with all spots filled.

Countdown to T20 World Cup 2026 Begins With 20 Teams Confirmed.

The T20 World Cup 2026 is all set to commence from the first week of February. Fans could also expect the schedule of the tournament in the upcoming weeks, as all the teams have been confirmed for the same. With the ICC organizing qualifier matches,

UAE, which also participated in the Asia Cup 2025, has been the last team to qualify for the T20 World Cup. With all 20 teams confirmed for the tournament, fans await to see which teams will be a part of the same group. And with India and Sri Lanka being the hosts, will the defending champions (India) be able to win consecutive titles?

1. Teams for T20 World Cup 2026

All 20 teams have now been confirmed for the T20 World Cup 2026. India and Sri Lanka had automatically qualified for the tournament being the hosts of the same. Plus, India won the previous edition,

The teams that made it to the Super Eight of the T20 from Cup 2024 also received automatic qualification to the same.. These teams include Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, South Africa, the West Indies, and the USA.

Three spots were for the teams from the ICC rankings. And these qualifications were given to New Zealand, Pakistan, and Ireland. It should be noted that all of these teams failed to perform well in the previous edition of the tournament.

America's Qualifier

Via the Americas Qualifier, Canada was strong enough to make it to the T20 World Cup 2026. The team topped the standings, winning all six of their games. The team also made its appearance in the T20 World Cup 2024, marking the hour as their consecutive any..

European Qualifiers

Two spots were open for the teams to be qualified through the European Qualifiers. Out of the five teams in the tournament, Italy and the Netherlands stood out at the top, marking their spot. It will be a great moment for Italy, as the team plays its first T20 World Cup next season.

Asia-EAP Qualifiers

Three teams have made it to the T20 World Cup from the Asia-EAP Qualifiers. These teams include the UAE, Nepal, and Oman. All three of these teams dominated in their respective groups and went on to the Super Sixes. Finishing in the top three, they were all able to reach the T20 World Cup 2026.

Africa Qualifiers

Similar to the European Qualifiers, two spots were also open for the teams through the Africa Qualifiers. Since the teams were divided into two groups of four teams each, knockout games were played in this tournament. Zimbabwe won the final match against Namibia, as both of them sealed their spot in the T20 World Cup.

2. T20 World Cup 2026 Format

The T20 World Cup 2026 will have a similar format to the previous edition. Since both editions had 20 teams, the format will be the same, with having round robin format being followed at first. After this, the tournament will convert to a knockout stage.

The 20 teams of the tournament will be divided into four groups of five teams each. All of these teams will be going against each other, and the top two teams from each group will advance to the next stage, which is the Super Eights.

‌Pic Source: Sach Kahoon Punjabi

In the Super Eight, the teams will be divided into two groups of four teams each. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the semi-final stages. And the winners of these two semifinals will clash each other in the ultimate clash to determine the winner of the T20 World Cup 2026.