ICC and Cricket South Africa unveil the 2027 World Cup schedule in Cape Town on Thursday

The one-year countdown to the 2027 World Cup begins in Cape Town on Thursday, when the ICC and Cricket South Africa release the fixture list for a 14-team tournament India will enter as the top-ranked ODI side in the world

The ICC and Cricket South Africa will unveil the schedule for the 2027 World Cup in Cape Town on Thursday, exactly a year out from a tournament that brings the 50-over World Cup back to Africa for the first time since 2003.

The launch also opens the ticketing process. Seats will not go on sale immediately, but supporters will be able to register for a ticket ballot from the same day.

Ten of the 14 places will have been settled by then. The cut-off for qualification by ICC ODI ranking falls on September 30, with the last four berths to be decided at a qualifying event early next year.

A year out in Cape Town

The tournament runs from October 2 to November 21, 2027, opening on Gandhi Jayanti and closing seven weeks later with the final.

It is spread across South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia, and comprises 57 matches — the largest men's World Cup yet staged on the continent.

Thursday's event in Cape Town will set out which of those matches go where, and when the qualified sides meet.

Ten of the 14 teams already known

India head the ODI rankings and qualify directly, alongside New Zealand, Pakistan, Australia, England, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.

South Africa, third in those rankings, take their place as hosts instead, which is what allows ninth-placed Bangladesh to come through on ranking. Zimbabwe also qualify automatically as hosts.

Namibia, the third host nation, are not yet assured of a place and must still earn one.

West Indies, currently in India for an ODI series, are outside the ranking cut and will have to come through the qualifiers. The four qualifiers will appear on Thursday's schedule only as placeholders.

Three rounds before the semi-finals

The 2027 edition uses a format unlike any of its predecessors. It opens with a Super Series, a round robin between the three lowest-ranked of the 14 qualified teams, from which only the winner goes forward.

The second round then has 30 matches, with 12 teams split into two groups of six. The top three from each group advance, together with the next best-placed side across both groups.

Those seven contest the Super 7 stage, a further 21 round-robin matches that decide the semi-finalists. The side finishing top plays the fourth-placed team and the second meets the third, with the two winners going through to the final.

Twelve grounds across three countries

The tournament will be played at 12 venues — eight in South Africa, three in Zimbabwe and one in Namibia.

The South African grounds include Newlands in Cape Town, the Wanderers in Johannesburg, Kingsmead in Durban and St George's Park in Gqeberha. Zimbabwe's share is split between Harare Sports Club, Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo and the ground at Victoria Falls, with Namibia's matches in Windhoek.

"The return of this prestigious tournament to Africa after 24 years is a landmark moment for cricket," ICC chair Jay Shah said when the host cities and the tournament brand were revealed.

What Thursday means for India

India arrive at the schedule launch as the number one ranked ODI side, and with an opening day that falls on a national holiday at home.

It is also the tournament Virat Kohli has said will be his last in the format for India. "For me, it's the last World Cup I'm going to play for India. And that is my motivation," he told JioStar this week.

India's own itinerary — which cities, which opponents, and how long a run to the final would be — becomes clear on Thursday.

The full fixture list is released in Cape Town on Thursday, with ticket ballot registration opening the same day.

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