England to host Women’s T20 World Cup for first time

A total of 33 fixtures will be played in June in the expanded tournament

England won the Women’s World Cup – the last time a women’s tournament was hosted in the country

(PA)

England will host the 2026 Women’s T20 World Cup, it was announced at the ICC Annual Conference on Tuesday.

With four major tournaments announced from 2024 to 2027, England will play host to the competition for the first time.

Although venues are yet to be confirmed, the competition will take place in June and will see the finals expanded from 10 to 12 nations, meaning a total of 33 fixtures will be played.

“We’re absolutely delighted that we’ve been selected to host the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026,” said Claire Connor, interim chief executive of the England and Wales Cricket Board.

“We saw back in 2017 how hosting the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup captured people’s imagination and I’ll never forget watching Heather Knight lift the trophy on that magical day at a sold-out Lord’s.”

With the women’s international calendar now mapped out for the next five years, the ICC also confirmed the other host nations for upcoming events.

Bangladesh will host a major women’s tournament for the first time when they stage the T20 World Cup in 2024, with India then the location for the Women’s World Cup a year later.

Once England then takes centre stage with the 2026 T20 Women’s World Cup, the inaugural Women’s Champions Trophy is slated for Sri Lanka – subject to qualification – for February 2027.