Co-hosts India will open their title defense at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 with a marquee night fixture against the United States at Mumbai’s iconic Wankhede Stadium on 7 February, setting the tone for what promises to be a spectacular opening day of cricket across the subcontinent. Former champions Pakistan and the West Indies will also feature on day one, playing at the historic Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) in Colombo and the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, respectively.
The world’s largest cricket venue, the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, has been earmarked to host the final on 8 March, in a tournament that will span eight electrifying venues across India and Sri Lanka. The MA Chidambaram Stadium (Chennai), Arun Jaitley Stadium (New Delhi), Wankhede Stadium (Mumbai), Eden Gardens (Kolkata) R. Premadasa Stadium (Colombo), Sinhalese Sports Club Cricket Ground (Colombo) and Pallekele International Cricket Stadium (Kandy) round out the full list of host venues. The complete schedule was unveiled at a glittering ceremony in Mumbai today.
ICC Chairman Mr Jay Shah presided over the event, which showcased the fixtures. Sharing the stage were Rohit Sharma, the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup-winning captain and newly appointed ICC Brand Ambassador, India’s T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav, and India women’s captain and reigning ICC CWC 2025 winner Harmanpreet Kaur.
The event will follow the same successful format used in 2024, when India lifted the trophy in Barbados. Twenty teams have been divided into four groups of five, with the top two from each progressing to the Super Eights, where teams will be placed according to pre-determined seedings.
- Group A: India, USA, Namibia, Netherlands, Pakistan
- Group B: Australia, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Ireland, Oman
- Group C: England, West Indies, Bangladesh, Italy, Nepal
- Group D: South Africa, New Zealand, Afghanistan, Canada, UAE
All Group B matches, featuring co-hosts Sri Lanka, will take place exclusively across Sri Lankan venues. All of Pakistan’s matches will also be played in Sri Lanka.
If Pakistan qualifies for the semi-finals, Colombo’s R. Premadasa Stadium will replace Kolkata as the host of Semi-Final 1. Should Pakistan reach the final, that venue will also shift from Ahmedabad to Colombo.
If India and Pakistan meet in the semi-finals, that match will be staged in Colombo, while Mumbai will host Semi-Final 2 involving India if they face any team other than Pakistan.
India and Sri Lanka are hosting the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup for the second time. Sri Lanka were the hosts of the 2012 edition while India hosted it in 2016, with West Indies winning both the editions.
India (2007 and 2024) and England (2010 and 2022) are the other teams to win the championship more than once while Pakistan (2009), Sri Lanka (2014) and Australia (2021) are the other past winners.
