South Africa and Namibia to co-host World Cup Qualifiers 2027
What's the story
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced that the 2027 World Cup Qualifiers will be co-hosted by South Africa and Namibia. The tournament is scheduled to take place between February 26 and March 21, featuring a total of 10 teams. The decision was confirmed during ICC meetings in Dubai last week, as per Cricinfo. Here we present the details.
Competition format
Details about the qualifier tournament
The 10-team tournament will feature the West Indies and Ireland, two Full Member nations.
The ICC had earlier communicated to potential participants that the tournament would take place between February 22 and March 23. However, the finalized dates were confirmed at last week's ICC meetings in Dubai.
Although specific venues have not been announced yet, sources have indicated South Africa and Namibia are set to host the event.
Qualification process
World Cup format
South Africa and Zimbabwe, the co-hosts, have been granted automatic qualification to the ODI World Cup along with eight other top-ranked teams.
These include India, New Zealand, Pakistan, Australia, England, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.
The remaining four spots will be filled by the 10-team qualifier tournament.
The winner will qualify directly for the World Cup group stage while three other teams will compete in a three-match Super Series to secure their main group spot.
Playoff competition
Qualifier playoff details
The qualifiers will also feature the top four teams from World Cricket League Division 2 (WCL 2) - Scotland, the USA, the Netherlands and Oman.
Four other teams will qualify through a World Cup qualifier playoff from December 1-22 at an undisclosed venue.
This playoff will include the bottom four teams of WCL 2 - Namibia, Canada, Nepal and the UAE - and top four teams from the Challenge League: Italy, Uganda, Jersey and Kuwait.