This will mark the first time the tournament has been held on these shores since the inaugural edition in 2009 when the hosts lifted the trophy by beating New Zealand in the final at Lord's.

It follows on from England and Wales hosting the 50-over Women's Cricket World Cup in 2017 when Heather Knight's side claimed glory as well, and ECB interim chief executive officer Clare Connor aims to use the T20 tournament to build on that legacy.

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"We're absolutely delighted we've been selected to host the 2026 ICC Women's T20 World Cup," Connor said.

"We saw back in 2017 how hosting the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup captured people's imagination and I'll never forget watching Heather Knight lift the trophy on that magical day at a sold-out Lord's.

"Women's cricket has developed rapidly since then, from the numbers of girls picking up bats through All Stars and Dynamos, joining clubs, and being able to progress on a pathway to the highest levels of performance.

"We're seeing right now the positive impact that the UEFA Women's Euro is having for football, and hosting this global cricket event will give us another incredible opportunity to inspire even more girls to pick up a bat and ball."

The most recent edition of the Women's T20 World Cup took place in Australia two years ago, with the hosts defeating India in the final.

The announcement came at the same time as the ICC confirmed Lord's will host the final of the men's World Test Championship in both 2023 and 2025, while Bangladesh will host a major ICC women's tournament for the first time in 2024 when the T20 World Cup heads there following next year's postponed edition in South Africa.

That will be followed by India hosting the 50-over Women's Cricket World Cup in 2025 and Sri Lanka being the venue for the inaugural Women's Champions Trophy, which will be held as a T20 competition in February 2026.

The six-team Champions Trophy will be followed in June that year by the Women's T20 World Cup in England, which will see the tournament expanded to 12 teams from the 10 currently participating and will feature 33 matches.

England's women are currently preparing to take part in the eight-team T20 cricket tournament at this year's Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, with the hosts in Group B along with New Zealand, South Africa and Sri Lanka.

It follows hot on the heels of the recent multi-format series at home to South Africa in which England triumphed 14-2 on points.

"This is a huge year for women's cricket in our country, with England women competing in the Commonwealth Games for the first time, the second year of The Hundred following straight after and then England and India meeting at Lord's as part of our white ball series," Martin Darlow, ECB interim chair, said.

"The women's game is growing at a remarkable pace and hosting the 2026 ICC Women's T20 World Cup will give a further boost to our strategy to make cricket a gender-balanced sport. This is a really exciting opportunity."