Pakistan, New Zealand and Ireland secured automatic qualification for the 2026 T20 World Cup, to be held in India and Sri Lanka, despite failing to qualify for the Super Eight stage of the recently concluded T20 World Cup.
Hosts India and Sri Lanka took up the first two automatic qualification spots for the 2026 T20 World Cup. Australia, England, South Africa, West Indies, USA, Bangladesh, Afghanistan sealed the other remaining automatic qualification spots by virtue of qualifying for the Super Eights at the 2024 T20 World Cup.
With nine of the 12 automatic qualification spots occupied, New Zealand (sixth), Pakistan (seventh) and Ireland (11th) grabbed the remaining three spots by virtue of being the highest-ranked teams in the ICC T20I Team Rankings outside of those that have already qualified for the 2026 T20 World Cup.
The 2026 edition of the T20 World Cup will also see participation from 20 teams. The remaining eight spots will be decided via the regional qualifiers.