The ODI World Cup 2027 has been sitting on the calendar for a while, but October 1 is when it finally starts taking shape for fans. The ICC is set to reveal the complete schedule in Cape Town, including the groups, fixtures and venues for the 14-team tournament that will be shared by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
For Indian fans, the timing is particularly straightforward: the announcement begins at 9 PM IST, so there is no need to wake up at some ridiculous hour or check social media the next morning to find out who India will play. The event will be available on television through Star Sports, while JioHotstar will stream it online. The ICC will also make the programme available through its official YouTube channel, which means supporters in countries without a confirmed broadcaster still have a way to follow the announcement.
ODI World Cup 2027: The one date Indian fans need to remember
The ODI World Cup 2027 schedule launch takes place on Thursday, October 1, 2026, at the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa in Cape Town. The show starts at 5:30 PM in South Africa, which converts to 9 PM in India. That is when the tournament stops being a collection of venues and dates mentioned by the ICC and becomes something fans can actually plan around. I
ndia will discover its group-stage opponents, match dates and venues, while supporters around the world will finally know how the 2027 ODI World Cup is going to unfold. The launch is also expected to bring some familiar faces onto the stage, with former World Cup stars such as Shaun Pollock, Aaron Finch and Brian Lara involved alongside current players including Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Aiden Markram, Lungi Ngidi and Pat Cummins.
For Indian viewers:
- Date: October 1, 2026
- Time: 9:00 PM IST
- TV: Star Sports 1, Star Sports 1 Hindi, Star Sports 2, Star Sports 2 Hindi and Star Sports 3
- Streaming: JioHotstar
- Global stream: ICC’s official YouTube channel
ODI World Cup 2027: This is more than just a fixture release
The reason this particular schedule announcement matters is that the 2027 ODI World Cup is not simply another 10-team tournament following the same route as 2023. There will be 14 teams and 57 matches, with the competition travelling through three countries before reaching the final.
The ODI World Cup 2027 tournament begins on October 2, 2027, and finishes on November 21, meaning supporters will have nearly seven weeks of cricket to follow. There is also an unusual opening stage involving the three lowest-ranked qualifiers.
They will play a Super Series in Windhoek, with the winner joining the other 12 teams in the main competition. Those 12 sides will then be divided into two groups of six before the tournament moves into the Super 7 stage. So when the ICC puts the fixture list out, fans aren’t merely finding out dates for India or Australia. They are seeing the road teams will have to travel if they want to reach the final.
The competition will eventually work like this:
- 14 teams enter the tournament.
- The three lowest-ranked qualifiers begin in a three-team Super Series.
- The winner joins the other 12 teams.
- Those 12 teams are split into two groups of six.
- The best three from each group advance.
- The next-best team across the two groups also qualifies.
- Seven teams then play 21 Super 7 matches.
- The top four move into the semi-finals.
- The semi-finals are 1st vs 4th and 2nd vs 3rd.
- The final is scheduled for November 21, 2027.
Africa gets an ODI World Cup 2027 across three countries
South Africa will naturally provide the largest share of the ODI World Cup tournament, but Zimbabwe and Namibia are equally important to the 2027 edition. This will be the first men’s ODI World Cup staged in Africa since 2003, while Namibia will host senior men’s World Cup matches for the first time. That gives the tournament a geographical spread that could become one of its defining features. Instead of spending the competition moving between venues in one country, teams will have to deal with three different cricketing environments and considerable travel between them.
South Africa’s list includes some of the country’s most recognisable grounds, from the Wanderers in Johannesburg and Newlands in Cape Town to Kingsmead in Durban and St George’s Park in Gqeberha. Zimbabwe brings Harare, Bulawayo and Victoria Falls into the tournament, while Namibia’s involvement centres on Windhoek.
The 12 venues for ODI World Cup 2027 are:
- Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg
- SuperSport Park, Centurion
- Newlands, Cape Town
- Kingsmead, Durban
- St George’s Park, Gqeberha
- Mangaung Oval, Bloemfontein
- Boland Park, Paarl
- Buffalo Park, East London
- Harare Sports Club, Harare
- Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
- Mosi-oa-Tunya International Cricket Stadium, Victoria Falls
- Namibia Cricket Ground, Windhoek
The schedule announcement will finally show which matches go where, and that could be particularly important for travelling supporters who have been waiting before making plans.
ODI World Cup 2027 Live Streaming and Broadcast: Where can fans outside India watch it?
The 9 PM Indian start time is convenient enough, but the rest of the cricket world will be watching at very different hours. The event begins at 5:30 PM in South Africa and Zimbabwe, 4:30 PM in the UK and 11:30 AM in the USA and Canada. Australian viewers will have a much less friendly time, with the announcement starting at 1:30 AM AEDT on October 2. In markets where a television broadcaster has not been confirmed, the ICC’s YouTube stream becomes the obvious option.
International viewing information:
- South Africa/Sub-Saharan Africa: SuperSport
- UK: Sky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports app
- USA/Canada: Willow TV and Willow TV app
- Pakistan: PTV, Geo Super, Myco and Tamasha
- Sri Lanka: DTV and Dialog Play
- Caribbean: ESPN Caribbean and Disney+
- Australia: Amazon Prime Video on demand
- UAE/MENA: StarzPlay Cricket
- New Zealand: ICC YouTube
- Bangladesh: ICC YouTube
- Worldwide: ICC YouTube
ODI World Cup 2027: Fans can start chasing tickets too
There is another important part of October 1 that has nothing to do with watching the announcement from a sofa. The World Cup ticket ballot also opens on the day of the schedule launch. It will remain open until November 21, 2026, so supporters are not being forced into a mad race for tickets the moment the ICC makes the announcement.
The ballot is free to enter and is not based on who applies first. Fans can request tickets for multiple matches, with a maximum of four tickets per match. If a particular game attracts more applications than the available seats, a randomised ballot will decide which applicants get the opportunity to buy tickets. Simply entering does not mean tickets are guaranteed, which is an important distinction for anyone already making plans around a particular India match.
Ticket ballot dates and rules:
- Opens: October 1, 2026
- Closes: November 21, 2026
- Entry fee: Free
- Multiple matches: Allowed
- Maximum request: 4 tickets per match
- Oversubscribed matches: Randomised ballot
- Successful applicants: Given a later window to purchase tickets
India will finally know what its ODI World Cup 2027 road looks like
And then there is the part that will dominate Indian cricket discussions almost immediately after the announcement: India’s schedule. We know the tournament will be played across South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia, and we know the competition will begin on October 2, 2027. What fans do not yet have is the actual sequence of India’s matches. That changes on October 1.
The schedule will tell supporters when India plays, where those games are being held and which opponents stand between the team and the Super 7. It will also give travelling fans something concrete to work with because there is a huge difference between casually saying you want to attend a World Cup match and knowing that India will be playing on a particular date in Cape Town, Johannesburg or somewhere else.
For players, too, the schedule matters. A World Cup campaign isn’t just 50 overs followed by another 50 overs. There is travel, recovery, different venues and the possibility of momentum changing quickly because of the tournament’s unusual format. The full fixture list will finally put all of that into one picture.
ODI World Cup 2027 schedule announcement: Live details
So, if you’re in India, October 1 at 9 PM IST is the simple answer. Star Sports will have the television coverage, JioHotstar will stream the event, and the ICC’s YouTube channel will provide a global option. By the end of the evening, fans should know the groups, fixtures and venue allocations for a World Cup that will eventually bring 14 teams together across three African nations.
And this time, the schedule announcement is only the beginning. The ticket ballot opens at the same time, the tournament starts on October 2, 2027, and the final is set for November 21, 2027. After months of talking about the next World Cup as something sitting in the distance, October 1 is when it finally gets dates, places and a proper shape.
Also READ: Somehow, Ajit Agarkar got India right. And wrong. 3 years of big calls and bigger doubts
Amar Pal Singh Bhalla is a sports writer covering cricket, football and tennis.
Based in India, he has followed the game for the last few years and writes
match analysis, previews and features for Beyond The Score
