ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 sets new digital benchmarks

The ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka has surpassed engagement records across its digital platforms - ICC.tv and the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) social media channels, helping cricket expand its global footprint.

Having started with 20 teams, the tournament is down to its final four with India, England, South Africa and New Zealand securing their place in the semi-final.

The tournament reached a fever pitch on Sunday, when India defeated former champions West Indies to seal the last remaining semi-final spot. The match set a new concurrent streaming record on ICC's streaming service, surpassing the previous peak set during the Men’s T20 World Cup final in 2024.

With the knockouts still to go, the record for the total number of users and total minutes watched on ICC.tv is already more than the entirety of the 2024 T20 World Cup. Compared to this stage in the 2024 event, unique users have grown by 28 percent while total playtime has increased by 56 percent.

The ongoing edition of the World Cup has surpassed 10 billion video views across ICC’s social media platforms and is on track to exceed the 16 billion record set in 2024.

More fans are enjoying the tournament in-depth than ever before. The average watch time per unique user has increased to 58 minutes this time around, a new high from the 47 minutes at the end of the Super 8 stage in 2024.

While multi-language feeds have expanded reach and accessibility in existing markets, growth in non-traditional territories have contributed to a sharp rise in engagement and enriched fan experience.

Three of the top five streams during the tournament have been non-English feeds, with ICC.tv broadcasting in Hindi, Urdu, Nepali, Japanese and Bahasa Indonesia. This focus on language accessibility has helped establish a connection with viewers in diverse cricketing communities around the world.

The strongest percentage growth has come from non-traditional markets, which have seen a 69% increase in users.

Germany has recorded a 150 percent increase in unique users from 2024, followed by Italy at 136 percent. Japan and South Korea have also each delivered growth of more than 100 percent across both views and unique users.

These record-breaking trends demonstrate tangible progress against the ICC’s stated ambition to deliver its most global and accessible event ever.

With record concurrent audiences, higher average watch times and a materially increased share of users and views coming from non-traditional territories, there has never been an ICC event more available, or engaged with, globally.

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