For the first time since 1900, cricket will be part of the Olympics. It’s set to take place at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, played in the T20 format, in both men’s and women’s categories.
Since only 6 teams will compete in this event, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has officially announced how those teams will be selected. 5 teams will qualify directly, while the 6th team will be decided through the ICC Olympics Qualifier tournament in 2027, which will involve 8 countries. The champions of that tournament will earn the right to play at the Olympics.
By December 31, 2026, the top-ranked teams in the ICC T20 rankings from the Africa, Asia, Europe, and Oceania regions will receive direct qualification. The USA, as the host nation, will also get a direct spot if they are among the top 15 in the rankings by the end of 2026. If the USA is not in the top 15 by December 31, 2026, that spot will instead go to the highest-ranked country among those who haven’t already qualified. (The USA currently sits at 13th place.)
On the women’s side, the 4 regional qualifying spots have already been decided. Based on their performance in the recent T20 World Cup, Australia, England, India, and South Africa have secured their places. For the USA women’s team to qualify directly, they must be ranked 15th or better. If not, then whichever not-yet-qualified country is ranked highest in the T20 women’s rankings by March 1, 2027 will take that spot instead. (The USA women’s team is currently ranked 19th.)
Right now, if we look at the top-ranked teams in each of the 4 regions in the ICC T20 rankings (men’s):
Asia region – India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan
Africa region – South Africa, Zimbabwe, Namibia
Europe region – England, Scotland, Ireland, Netherlands
Oceania region – Australia, New Zealand
Based on the current rankings, if we guess the 4 countries that will directly qualify from these 4 regions, they would be India, South Africa, England, and Australia. Since Sri Lanka is currently ranked 9th, even if the USA fails to qualify, Sri Lanka still cannot become the 5th directly-qualifying team. So Sri Lanka will have to play in the Olympic Qualifier tournament.
Apart from the 5 teams that qualify directly, the 8 teams that will play in the ICC Olympics Qualifier tournament — which decides the other team going to the Olympics — will also be selected based on the ICC rankings. The top 8 not-yet-qualified teams in the ICC T20 rankings will play in this qualifier tournament, and the champion of that tournament will secure a spot in the 2028 Olympics.
However, since the West Indies is made up of several separate countries and doesn’t have a single Olympic committee recognized by the IOC, they cannot compete at the Olympics as “West Indies.” But if, by December 31, 2026, a Caribbean region team would have been among the 8 teams playing in the qualifying tournament, a separate tournament (Caribbean Qualifier) will be held among the Caribbean nations, and the winner of that will be presented as a separate country in the 2027 “ICC Olympics Qualifier” tournament.
So, based on this, the 8 teams expected to play in the ICC Olympics Qualifier tournament are:
Men’s –
New Zealand, Pakistan, the team selected from the Caribbean, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Ireland, Zimbabwe
Women’s –
The team selected from the Caribbean, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Ireland, Bangladesh, Scotland, Thailand, Papua New Guinea
Tournament Format and How Medals Will Be Decided
Once the 6 qualified teams arrive at the Olympics, they will be divided into two groups consisting of 3 teams each (Group A and Group B).
During the preliminary round, every team will play matches against the other two teams in their own group. After that, they will play against two more teams from the opposite group, making a total of 4 matches for each team in the group stage.
Once all the group matches are completed, the top two teams in the points table will face each other in the grand final to compete for the Gold and Silver medals. Meanwhile, the teams that finish in 3rd and 4th place in the points table will play against each other for the Bronze medal.