The road to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games (LA28) continues to take shape with the official approval of the cricket qualification system by the Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The decision marks another important step in the organization of the Games, providing athletes, international federations and national Olympic committees with a clear pathway to secure a place in a sport that will return to the Olympic program after more than a century.
Alongside cricket, the IOC also approved updates to the surfing qualification system, reinforcing its commitment to building qualification pathways that combine elite performance with global representation. The publication of these criteria adds to the qualification systems already confirmed for most LA28 sports, while athletics and football remain the only disciplines awaiting official confirmation of their qualification procedures.
Cricket’s return to the Olympic stage now has a defined qualification pathway
The approval of the qualification system carries particular significance because cricket will make its long-awaited Olympic return at Los Angeles 2028. The sport made its only previous Olympic appearance at Paris 1900, and 128 years later it will once again be part of the Games with separate men’s and women’s T20 tournaments. Each competition will feature six national teams, with squads of up to 15 athletes, resulting in 90 athlete quotas per gender and a total of 28 matches across both tournaments.
As with every Olympic sport, each International Federation is responsible for establishing its qualification criteria in accordance with the Olympic Charter and the Qualification System Principles approved by the IOC. These mechanisms are designed to provide multiple qualification opportunities, ensure broad continental representation and reduce travel demands for athletes and teams throughout the qualification process. Publishing the qualification rules well in advance also gives National Olympic Committees greater certainty as they prepare for the next two years.
Surfing qualification updates keep LA28 preparations moving forward
In addition to cricket, the IOC Executive Board approved changes to the surfing qualification system, maintaining the overall athlete quota while adjusting the distribution of places between the International Surfing Association (ISA) and the professional World Surf League (WSL) circuit. Among the main updates is an increase in qualification spots through the WSL, which will now award eight men’s and eight women’s places, while the ISA pathway gains a more clearly defined role within the qualification process.
The changes aim to maintain a balance between rewarding the world’s best surfers and preserving the Olympic principle of universality. At the same time, the qualification timeline for the 2026–2028 period remains unchanged, with further refinements to the sequence of events that will determine the final allocation of Olympic quota places. With these approvals, the IOC has now ratified qualification systems for 49 sports and disciplines, leaving only athletics and football still awaiting official confirmation in the lead-up to LA28.
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