For the first time ever! Italy qualifies for the 2026 ICC Men's T20 World Cup

By Sabyasachi Bhattacherjee 

Italy's men's cricket team will play in the 2026 ICC Men's T20 World Cup. Italy qualified for their first Cricket World Cup on Friday (July 11). Despite losing by nine wickets in their final ICC Men's T20 World Cup Europe 2025 qualifier against the Netherlands in The Hague on Friday,  Italy managed to finish in top two. they will travel to India next year to take part in the 2026 edition of the ICC Men's Twenty20 World Cup. 

The 2026 ICC Men's T20 World Cup will be held in February and March next year at multiple venues in India and Sri Lanka. 

In the 2024 ICC Men's Twenty20 World Cup, which was held in the West Indies and the United States, three teams - Uganda, Canada and the United States - made their first appearance, and the Americans even managed to qualify for the Super Eight. 

After a memorable performance in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Europe 2025 Qualifiers, where they beat Scotland by 12 runs on July 9, the Italian side will be looking to do better in the shortest format mega-event next year.

The qualification of Italy and the Netherlands for the 2026 T20 World Cup on friday has also been a disappointment for the jersey. Jersey's men's cricket team finished the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Europe 2025 Qualifiers with 5 points from four matches, but a poor Net Run Rate (NRR) left them third behind Italy. 

If  Italy beaten the Netherlands in the final match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Europe 2025 Qualifier at Sportpark Westvliet in the Hague on Friday, then Jersey would have finished second in the points table and qualified for the 2026 T20 World Cup. 

A total of 15 teams—India, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, South Africa, West Indies, USA, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Netherlands and Italy  Qualified for the 2026 World Twenty20 and five other teams two from the Africa qualifiers, which will be held in Zimbabwe from September 19 to October 4, and three from the Asia-EAP regional finals.

This success of Italy is not only a reflection of the quality of their cricket, but also the spread of cricket in Europe. Like Afghanistan, Ireland, Netherlands, Italy also wants to shine their name in the cricket world. 

Italy's participation in the 2026 World Cup will attract new audiences, especially in Europe. Now to see how much this history-making team can surprise in the World Cup!