T20 World Cup Formats
Since the first T20 World Cup in 2007, the format for the finals has had some minor changes. Generally, the Test playing nations automatically qualify, joined by some associate nations which go through a qualifying tournament.
2007 South Africa
The 2007 tournament comprised the 10 Test-playing nations plus Kenya and Scotland who qualified by finishing first and second in the 2007 WCL Division One. In the group stage the 12 teams were divided into four groups of three. The top two teams from these groups went through to the second stage of the tournament, the Super Eight. These eight teams played in two groups of four. The two top teams from each Super Eight group qualified for the knock-out semi-finals.
2009 England
The same format was used as in 2007. 12 teams participated, featuring the Test-playing nations and qualifying associate nations. Prior to the tournament Zimbabwe pulled out, creating an additional space for an associate nation. Ireland, the Netherlands, and Scotland qualified through the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier. group stage and Super Eight. The top two teams from these groups went through to the second stage of the tournament, the Super Eight. These eight teams played in two groups of four. The two top teams from each Super Eight group qualified for the knock-out semi-finals.
2010 West Indies
The format was the same as previous T20 World Cups. Afghanistan and Ireland joined the 10 Test-playing nations. From an initial four groups of three, the top two from each group went through to the Super Eight second stage of the tournament. These eight teams played in two groups of four. The two top teams from each Super Eight group qualified for the knock-out semi-finals.
2012 Sri Lanka
The format was the same as previous T20 World Cups. Ireland and Afghanistan joined the 10 Test-playing nations. A preliminary round was held with four groups of three. The top two from each group went through to the Super 8 second stage of the tournament. These eight teams played in two groups of four. The two top teams from each Super 8 group qualified for the knock-out semi-finals.
2014 Bangladesh
There were 16 teams for the first time (all previous tournaments had 12 teams). Six associate member teams came through a qualifying tournament to join the ten full-member IOC teams. The qualifying teams were Ireland, Afghanistan, Nepal, United Arab Emirates, The Netherlands, and Hong Kong. The top 8 ranked teams went straight to the Super 10 stage. The other 8 teams played the first round in two groups of four, with the top of each group progressing to the Super 10. The Super 10 stage consisted of 2 groups of 5, with the top 2 of each group progressing to the knock-out semi-finals.
2016 India
The tournament featured 16 teams (for the 2nd time) - all ten full ICC members were joined by six associate members that qualified through the 2015 ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier: Scotland, Netherlands, Ireland, Hong Kong, Afghanistan, Oman. The same as in 2014, the tournament was divided into three stages. First, the eight lowest-ranked teams played off, with the top two joining the eight highest-ranked teams in the Super 10 stage, which consisted of 2 groups of 5, with the top 2 of each group progressing to the knock-out semi-finals then the final.
2021 UAE & Oman
There were 16 teams again, though the Super 10 stage is now Super 12. The 16 participants included the top nine ranked teams plus hosts India. They were joined by six teams who had qualified for the tournament via the 2019 ICC T20 World Cup Qualifier: Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, Ireland, Namibia, Scotland, Oman. The top 8 ranked teams went straight to the Super 12 stage. The other 8 teams played the first round in two groups of four, with the top two from each group advancing to the Super 12s. The Super 12s comprised two groups of six, with the top 2 of each group progressing to the knock-out semi-finals then the final.
2022 Australia
The format was the same as in 2021, though the qualifying process was different. The twelve teams that reached the Super 12 phase of the previous T20 World Cup automatically qualified. They were joined by the top two teams from each of the two Global Qualifiers. Of the 16 teams taking part, the top 8 eight progressed directly to the Super 12 stage of the competition. The remaining eight played in two groups of four, with the top two progressing to the Super 12. The top two teams in each Super 12 section qualifed for the semi-finals.
2024 USA and the West Indies
The competition expanded from 16 to 20 teams. The teams were divided into 4 groups of 5, with the top two teams from each group advancing to the Super Eights. The teams in the Super Eights were divided into two groups of four, with the top two from each group advancing to the semi-finals.
2026 India and Sri Lanka
The format will be the same as in 2024. 20 teams divided into 4 groups of 5, with the top two teams from each group advancing.
Related Pages
- T20 WC History
- More about the ICC World Twenty20
- List of T20 world cup Winners
- List of Host Countries
- T20 World Cup Trivia
- More Sports History
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