India are in all four of the most-wanted 2027 World Cup matches, and the ticket ballot has passed one million applications
India v Pakistan leads with more than 110,000 applications as over 320,000 fans ask for 1.1 million tickets for the 2027 World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
Oct 6, 2026
The four matches fans want most all have India in them. The ICC said on Tuesday that applications for the 2027 Men’s Cricket World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia passed one million in less than three days of the ballot opening on 1 October, and the top of the demand list belongs to one team.
India against Pakistan leads with more than 110,000 applications. South Africa against India has more than 92,000 and India against Australia more than 86,000. Fourth is a second India-Pakistan game, the Super 7 fixture in Cape Town on 7 November, with almost 78,000, even though it is only India against Pakistan if both sides qualify for that stage. The final in Johannesburg on 21 November already has almost 69,000.
Over 320,000 people have registered so far, asking for more than 1.1 million tickets between them.
Why India and Pakistan are on the list twice
The format is new. India are in Group A with Australia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Zimbabwe and a qualifier. Their first game is a repeat of the 2023 final, against Australia in Cape Town on 7 October 2027, and they play Pakistan in Johannesburg three days later.
The top three in each group of six go through to a Super 7 stage, along with the better of the two fourth-placed sides. Nothing carries over. Each team plays six more games between 25 October and 14 November, and the top four go into the semi-finals in Cape Town and Tshwane.
So that fans can book travel early, the ICC has pre-seeded seven teams into Super 7 slots. India are A1, which has them down for South Africa in Johannesburg on 31 October and Pakistan in Cape Town a week later. If a seeded side misses out, whoever qualifies in its place takes over its fixtures.
How the ballot works
Entry is free and nobody pays anything yet. It is not first-come, first-served either, so a registration in November counts the same as one made on opening day. You can enter for as many matches as you like and ask for up to four tickets per match.
Where a game is oversubscribed, a random draw decides who gets to buy, and successful applicants hear by email. Prices run from USD 9.62 (R158) for entry-level seats to USD 31.31 (R514) for the top tier.
The ballot closes at 23:59 Central Africa Time on 21 November. For anyone in India leaving it late, that is 3:29am IST on 22 November.
Africa’s first 50-over World Cup since 2003
ICC chief executive Sanjog Gupta called the figure “a demonstration of the attention, stature and affiliation” the tournament already has. Fourteen teams will play 57 matches at 12 venues, eight in South Africa, three in Zimbabwe and one in Namibia, the first men’s 50-over World Cup in Africa since South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya hosted in 2003.
It starts in Windhoek on 2 October 2027 with a three-team Super Series that decides the last place in the group stage. India’s last group game, against Zimbabwe on 24 October, will be the first World Cup match at the new ground in Victoria Falls.