Cricket has been historically unsuccessful in winning over the United States, so how can the T20 World Cup help flip the script?
Is cricket really coming to the United States?
The game has long desired to conquer the land of dreams, and it won’t get a better shot at finally making it big.
As the United States hosts 16 matches of the latest ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, there are high hopes that cricket can finally make significant inroads in a lucrative and populous market.
The stars have seemingly aligned: Following the T20 World Cup, the second edition of the privately run Major League Cricket franchise tournament will bring some of the game’s biggest stars to the US and, in 2028, cricket will feature at the LA Olympics for the first time since 1900.
However, cricket in the US has a history of poor governance, riven by factions and financial mismanagement. The sport’s growth has been hampered by the country’s sheer size and diversity of cricket cultures – factors also considered potential strengths.
Here’s the lowdown on cricket’s history in the US and a peek into its future:
When USA and Canada meet in the opening match on June 1, there will be plentiful reminders that these two countries played the first international cricket match in 1844, when Canada won the two-day fixture.
But the game took a backseat until the latter half of the 20th century when increased immigration – particularly from the Indian subcontinent – saw the game grow – with little cohesion – in communities from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh as well as the Caribbean.
A national governing board, the United States of America Cricket Association (USACA), was formed in 1965 but it struggled to unify the diverse and siloed cricket communities for the next three decades.
The International Cricket Council (ICC), at times, implemented sanctions – withdrawing USA from tournaments, withholding funds and suspensions – all of which failed to overcome the fundamental issues.
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