Victoria Falls Stadium Set For Four World Cup 2027 Matches

Zimbabwe's newest cricket ground is almost built. The Victoria Falls stadium, formally the Mosi-oa-Tunya International Cricket Stadium, is structurally close to finished. An ICC delegation reached that view after inspecting the three Zimbabwean host cities for the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2027. Zimbabwe Cricket managing director Givemore Makoni said "The main building works are as good as complete". The ground is down to stage four World Cup matches, including Zimbabwe against India on 24 October 2027.

The visit covered four grounds. Harare Sports Club, Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo and the Victoria Falls site were all assessed. So was Takashinga Cricket Club in Harare, which is under consideration for warm-up fixtures. The ICC's tournament director Sarah Edgar led the delegation with Hamilton Masakadza, the tournament director for Zimbabwe.

Inside the Victoria Falls build

The ICC listed the media centre, broadcast centre, changing rooms, medical facility, grandstands and grass banks as substantially complete. Roofing and bucket seating are still going in. Corporate gazebos are yet to be installed. Floodlights are planned before the tournament. The outstanding items are finishing work, not structural build.

Zimbabwe Cricket will name a date for the ground's first trial match later. Makoni said that fixture "will give us an opportunity to assess the playing facilities and essential match-day operations". Full completion is targeted for the middle of 2027, with an international series planned around that point to test the venue under match conditions.

Harare and Bulawayo adapt

The two established grounds face a narrower job. Selected stands at Harare Sports Club and Queens Sports Club will be refurbished with bucket seats, and Queens is also due floodlights. Zimbabwe last staged World Cup cricket in 2003, as co-host with South Africa and Kenya, and tournament requirements have moved a long way since. Edgar said the ICC was "pleased with the progress made in addressing the baseline requirements".

Four matches on the new ground

The build has a fixture list waiting for it. Victoria Falls drew four games when the ICC published the 2027 schedule, starting with a group match and continuing into the Super 7 stage.

• 24 October 2027: Zimbabwe v India, group stage
• 28 October 2027: Super 7 match
• 30 October 2027: Super 7 match
• 1 November 2027: Super 7 match

By the ICC's published schedule, Harare takes four matches and Bulawayo two. The tournament runs from 2 October to 21 November 2027 across 57 matches and 12 venues, with 14 teams, and is co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. The final is in Johannesburg. It is the first World Cup in Africa since the 2003 edition.

Timelines and the ticket ballot

Masakadza said of the Victoria Falls site that "we're all very excited about how things are looking there", and that the timelines are on track. For supporters the nearer date is administrative. The ICC's ticket ballot closes at 23:59 CAT on 21 November. Entry is free and no payment is taken at the ballot stage.

The trial match remains unscheduled. Until Zimbabwe Cricket sets a date, the ground has no cricket booked before the mid-2027 test series, and its playing surface and match-day systems stay unproven. Makoni's assessment of the facilities will follow that fixture.