England will open their 2027 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup campaign against Bangladesh in Windhoek on 8 October, with Harry Brook’s side scheduled to play group matches in Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
The draw places England in Group B alongside co-hosts South Africa, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and one qualifier. Their five-match itinerary ends with a meeting against New Zealand in Gqeberha on 23 October, after a schedule that includes two games in Windhoek and a visit to Harare.
The tournament will run from 2 October to 21 November. Before the group stage begins, a three-team Super Series will determine the final entrant, with its last match due on 6 October. Australia’s Group A fixture against India in Cape Town on 7 October is then scheduled to open the group stage.
England’s group-stage fixtures
| Date | Fixture | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| 8 October | England v Bangladesh | Windhoek, Namibia |
| 13 October | England v Sri Lanka | Windhoek, Namibia |
| 16 October | England v South Africa | Gqeberha, South Africa |
| 20 October | England v Qualifier | Harare, Zimbabwe |
| 23 October | England v New Zealand | Gqeberha, South Africa |
The fixture in Harare is particularly notable. BBC Sport reported that it would be England men’s first match in Zimbabwe since 2004. England’s schedule therefore gives them a group-stage match in each of the three co-host nations: Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
The 14-team tournament begins with a three-team Super Series. Its winner joins 10 automatic qualifiers and the Cricket World Cup Qualifier winner in two groups of six. Each team will play the other five sides in its group once, making England’s listed five fixtures the complete group-stage schedule. South Africa and Zimbabwe qualified directly as hosts, while Namibia will also stage matches during the tournament.
South Africa are England’s host-nation opponents in the group, while New Zealand provide their final group-stage test. England have not been drawn with Australia or India, who are in Group A with Pakistan, Afghanistan, co-hosts Zimbabwe and a qualifier. India are due to play Pakistan in Johannesburg on 10 October.
England won the World Cup in 2019 but went out in the first round of the 2023 tournament in India, according to BBC Sport and Sky Sports. The announced draw now establishes the route they must take in the 2027 competition, rather than offering a direct comparison with their previous campaigns.
How England can reach the Super 7 and semi-finals
The 14-team event has a three-phase structure before the semi-finals. The six teams in each group will play the other five sides once. The top three from each group, plus the better fourth-placed team across the two groups, will advance to the Super 7 stage.
Points will not carry from the group phase into the Super 7, the ICC said. Each side reaching that stage will play six further matches, and the top four will qualify for the semi-finals on 17 and 18 November. The final is scheduled for Johannesburg on 21 November.
The ICC has pre-seeded England in the AB4 Super 7 position. It said that a non-seeded side qualifying in place of a pre-seeded team would take the position allocated to the team it had displaced.
If England progress, the ECB has listed their potential second-phase venues as Centurion on 27 October, Victoria Falls on 30 October, Cape Town on 2 November, Durban on 5 and 8 November, and Gqeberha on 11 November. Those fixtures remain conditional on qualification.
The itinerary makes the group phase a travelling campaign as well as a five-match qualification test. England’s opening two matches offer continuity in Windhoek, but the final three are spread between Gqeberha, Harare and Gqeberha again. The top three from each group qualify, joined by the better of the two fourth-placed teams, meaning seven of the 12 group-stage sides reach the Super 7. Group results will determine whether England finish in the top three of Group B or claim the better of the two fourth-place positions.