ICC shelves World Club Championship until 2031 after Big Three push back
Plans for a World Club Championship in cricket will not happen until 2031 at the earliest. The International Cricket Council has shelved the idea after opposition from England, Australia and India. The calendar stays as it is.
The decision followed a cricket operations workshop in Dubai. No additional events were proposed there. The next Future Tours Programme, the master schedule that runs from 2027 to 2031, will now mirror the current cycle, The Guardian reported.
The ICC had floated several new concepts. They included a World Club Championship for T20 franchise teams and four-team T20 competitions for international sides in extra windows. An earlier review had also raised shorter one-day internationals, the 50-over format, as one option for overhauling the schedule.
England, Australia and India said no. Their argument is simple. The calendar is full. There is no space for new tournaments unless existing ones such as World Cups and the Champions Trophy are cut.
That position carries weight because the three boards have already locked in their own fixtures until 2031. The Ashes will open the next World Test Championship, the two-year league that ends with a final, in England in summer 2027. The return series follows in Australia in 2029-30. England have also agreed a five-Test tour of India in early 2028 and will host India in 2029.
Money sits behind the debate. The ICC commissioned a strategic review by McKinsey & Company, due to be presented at its quarterly meeting in Bali in November 2026. The review was ordered amid concern that media rights values will fall sharply, with the current Indian deal seen as unsustainable.
The numbers explain the worry. Disney Star paid $3.1 billion for ICC rights in India for 2024 to 2027. That company has since merged with Viacom 18 to create JioStar. The ICC sells its rights region by region across 11 territories for a total of $3.5 billion, with the Indian deal providing the vast majority. India generates around 70% of cricket’s global revenue.
One change is still alive. The ICC is considering expanding the World Test Championship from nine teams to 12. Afghanistan, Ireland and Zimbabwe would join.
For fans, this means familiarity. No new global club event. No extra mini-tournaments. The same rhythm of bilateral series, World Cups and Test championship cycles through to 2031.
The immediate focus is closer. England will travel to Pakistan later in October 2026 for a series also featuring Sri Lanka.
