Keen to build on the success of the recently concluded Women's World Cup, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has confirmed that the 2029 edition of the tournament will feature ten teams -- an expansion from the current eight.

The ICC, which had first announced plans to broaden the women's game on International Women's Day in 2021, reaffirmed its "commitment to the growth of women's cricket" in a recent statement following the success of the 2025 World Cup.

Since 2000, the Women's ODI World Cup has featured eight teams. The 2029 edition, however, will include 48 matches compared to 31 in the last tournament.

The ICC also announced that the Women's T20 World Cup next year will be expanded to 12 teams, up from 10 in the previous edition held in the UAE.

"Nearly 300,000 fans watched the event in stadia, breaking the record for tournament attendance for any women's cricket event," the ICC statement read. "The tournament also witnessed viewership growth, setting new records for on-screen audiences across the world, with nearly 500 million viewers in India alone."

The ICC board also ratified appointments to the ICC Women's Cricket Committee, including Ashley De Silva, Mithali Raj, Amol Muzumdar, Ben Sawyer, Charlotte Edwards, and Sala Stella Siale-Vaea.

The ICC confirmed that cricket's return to the Olympics at the Los Angeles 2028 Games will include 28 matches across both men's and women's competitions. Six teams will participate in each event — the top-ranked side from each of the five regions (Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania), along with hosts USA.

A qualifying event will determine the sixth team, though details have yet to be finalised. Matches are scheduled to begin on July 12, 2028, at the Fairgrounds Stadium, located around 50 kilometres outside Los Angeles.

Cricket will also feature at several upcoming multi-sport events, including the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, the 2027 African Games in Cairo, and the 2027 PanAm Games in Lima.

Talks have also begun for cricket's inclusion in the Brisbane 2032 Olympics. ICC CEO Sanjog Gupta told members that "meaningful discussions" had been held with Brisbane 2032 organisers. Gupta and ICC chair Jay Shah recently met with officials from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), LA28, and Brisbane 2032 in Lausanne, Switzerland, to discuss event logistics, formats, and qualification pathways.

Meanwhile, iIn other developments, the ICC confirmed that it will begin a bidding process for its official mobile cricket game -- a project that has been at the centre of an ongoing dispute with the World Cricketers' Association (WCA).

"The ICC Board confirmed its approval to issue an Invitation to Tender (ITT) for Video Gaming Rights, opening the door for leading global partners to collaborate with the ICC in delivering world-class, digital fan experiences," the board said.

The disagreement between the ICC and WCA stems from NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) rights, with the WCA claiming that any ICC game featuring players could breach existing agreements.

Earlier this year, the ICC decided that individual member boards would negotiate NIL rights directly with players. While it remains unclear how many boards have secured these rights, estimates suggest that at least half of the Full Members have reached agreements.

The bidding process follows an Expression of Interest issued in June, as the ICC seeks to strengthen its digital engagement and global fan base.