How Many Countries Play Cricket?

Cricket isn’t a new sport, it has a great history, and British Colonial time has taken this sport to other countries. Nowadays, cricket is a global sport played in more than 100 countries across continents. 

ICC (International Cricket Council) is an international governing body of cricket. Introduction of new rules, formats, or making World Cup schedules are done by them. To know more, you can visit the Indibet app for news, blogs, predictions, records, stats, and lot more. 

How Many Countries Play Cricket Worldwide?

As per data available on the official ICC website, there are 110 member countries in total. Out of them, only 12 countries are full members with Test-playing status. The other 98 countries are associate members. Over time, the ICC keeps on adding new members as well.

Which Countries Play International Cricket?

Cricket is played at different levels and stages, international cricket is played between the ICC member countries, and matches between them are played in all formats – Test, ODI, and T20. 

Full ICC members team who plays all formats of cricket. While other countries play World Cup qualifiers and other tournaments to qualify. 

Overall, there are 12 full member test playing nations that play all three formats in bilateral series among each other. 

ICC Full Members vs Associate Members

There is a difference between ICC full members and Associate members. As full members have voting rights in the ICC. Full members have long cricket history and domestic structures, importantly fan bases.

Full Member Countries

Associate Member Countries

Associate members didn’t have Test status, these countries are developing the structure, and sport is getting recognition among these 98 countries that have associate member status.

Countries like the Netherlands, Scotland, Italy, UAE, Oman, Nepal, Namibia, Kenya, Uganda, USA, Canada, Papua New Guinea, are playing T20 matches.

While countries like the Netherlands, Canada, UAE, Namibia, Scotland, Nepal, Oman, USA also have ODI status as well.

Countries Where Cricket Is Most Popular

Some countries love cricket above any other sport and have a strong professional structure as well. 

• India: The world’s biggest cricket market, having the richest global cricket board, the ICC, creates a special window in its calendar for IPL. Also, make ICC tournament schedule keeping India in mind.
• Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh: Cricket is effectively the number one sport, with massive TV ratings and street‑level participation.
• Australia and England: Long traditions, big domestic leagues, and strong broadcast audiences.
• South Africa and New Zealand: Cricket is among the most watched sports, especially in summer.
• Afghanistan and Nepal: Rapid growth, passionate fans, and increasing international success.

How Many Countries Play Test, ODI, and T20 Cricket?

• Test: There are only 12 countries that play Test cricket officially Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, West Indies, Zimbabwe.
• One Day Internationals: All 12 test playing nations have ODI status. Apart from this, 8 associate teams also have ODI status too.
• T20: 110 nations play T20 Cricket, even in Olympics 2028, which will happen in Los Angeles, cricket will also feature. 

Is Cricket Played in the Olympics?

From the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics onwards, we are going to see full member cricket teams competing against each other. Before that, in the 1900 Paris Olympics, a single match between Great Britain and France took place and was won by Great Britain.

How Cricket Is Expanding Around the World

ICC is founded in the year 1909, now it has 110 members in total, covering 5 regions globally – Asia, Australia, America, Africa, Europe. Some countries are growing with fan bases in them. 

Countries also have domestic and franchise leagues like IPL, BBL, CPL, SA20, ILT20, The Hundred, etc, attracting new audiences in the country.

Cricket Today: Global Growth and Digital Engagement

Franchise cricket has helped a lot in the global growth of cricket and has also increased its digital engagement across platforms. Live streaming of matches has made it easy for a global audience to follow a game. 

Official boards and leagues push highlights, stats, and short‑form videos, which keep global audiences hooked and help convert casual viewers into regular fans.

Cricket-themed games and online sports betting have become part of the digital engagement layer around matches. Indibet app also offers features like live odds, real‑time match data, virtual cricket, and an exclusive “Cricketbook” section with domestic and international markets.

Oliver Bennett Content Writer

Oliver Bennett is a professional sports betting analyst known for creating data-driven and logic-based content while keeping ethical practices above anything. With 8+ years of experience in analyzing betting trends, odds, and exchanges. He is a data science graduate from the University of Nottingham. At Indibet, he focuses on sharp market insights, betting psychology, and pre-match prediction strategies. His work is deeply rooted in Google’s guidelines and framework, ensuring accuracy, transparency, and user trust that eventually helps in improving the rankings of your writeup.

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