The format of the Cricket World Cup has changed greatly over the course of its history. The first four tournaments were played by eight teams, divided into two groups of four. The competition was held in two stages. A group stage and a knock-out stage. The four teams in each group played each other once in the group stage. The top two teams in each group went through to the semi-finals. The winners of the semi-finals played against each other in the final. With the return of South Africa in 1992 after the ending of the apartheid boycott, nine teams played each other once in the group phase, and the top four teams progressed to the semi-finals. The tournament was made bigger in 1996, with two groups of six teams. The top four teams from each group progressed to quarter-finals and semi-finals.