ICC announce T20 competitions to strengthen women's associate member teams

The International Cricket Council (ICC) Board has approved new initiatives to enhance the competitiveness of women’s Associate Member (AM) teams. This move is part of a larger strategy in preparation for the expansion of ICC women’s events between 2028 and 2031.

Starting from 2025, two annual T20 International tournaments will be held, featuring a total of 24 teams. These tournaments aim to provide structured competition and context, leading up to the 16-team ICC Women’s T20 World Cup scheduled for 2030. Further details about these tournaments will be shared in the future.

Additionally, the ICC Board has approved the women’s Future Tours Programme (FTP) and calendar for 2025-2029, which will be published soon. The ICC Chief Executives’ Committee (CEC) has also made significant changes to the Women’s rankings update, moving it from October 1 to May 1 each year. Now, teams must play a minimum of eight matches, up from six, reflecting the growing volume of women’s international cricket.

The CEC confirmed the process for granting One Day International (ODI) status to the five Associate Member women’s teams in the upcoming 2025-2029 cycle. A maximum of two Associate Members will qualify for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier in 2025, while the remaining slots will be filled based on the ICC T20I team rankings at the time of the annual update.