The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday confirmed the qualification path for the sport’s historic return to the Olympics at the 2028 Los Angeles Games after a 128-year hiatus.
The LA 2028 men’s and women’s cricket competitions will feature six teams each, with guaranteed representation from Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania.
Of the six spots, five will be decided through a combination of existing ICC events and ICC T20I rankings, according to the existing Future Tour Program (FTP) structure, shared by the apex body on Monday.
Meanwhile, the sixth and final place in the men’s and women’s competitions will be determined through the inaugural ICC Olympic Qualifier, which will be held in 2027 and feature eight teams.
“The five qualifying places in each event will be decided by a combination of existing ICC events and ICC T20I rankings, in accordance with the existing approved and published FTP structure,” the ICC said in a statement.
“The sixth and final place in the men’s and women’s competitions will be determined through the new ICC Olympic Qualifier, which will take place in 2027.”
The ICC further shared that the ongoing Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 has confirmed that Australia, England, India and South Africa have qualified for the respective cricket competition at the Games by virtue of being the highest-ranked eligible finalists from Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania.
As per the newly revealed qualification route, the United States of America (USA) remains eligible to qualify as host nation for the men’s and women’s events, but are subject to appearing in the top 15 of the relevant ICC T20I rankings at any time during the qualification period from June 30, 2026 to December 31, 2026.
However, if the US men’s and women’s teams do not meet the criteria, fifth places in both events will be awarded to the highest-ranked unranked nation in the respective rankings, with deadlines set at March 1, 2027 and December 31, 2026, respectively.
The top cricket body also shared that the West Indies are not eligible to participate in the Olympics or obtain a quota as they are a composite member of the ICC representing multiple Caribbean nations and are not recognized as a National Olympic Committee (NOC) of the IOC.
However, if their men’s and women’s teams are among the top eight ranked teams that have not yet qualified by December 31, 2026, a dedicated Caribbean Qualifier event will be held to determine which NOC will represent the region in the ICC Qualifier.
