Why Cricket Is Growing in Popularity in the US

If you just look at the numbers, with around 2.5 billion fans, cricket is second only to soccer in terms of global popularity. The sport originated in England in the 16th century. Yet, it soon spread to the rest of the world — most notably the Indian subcontinent, Australia, and New Zealand, areas where the best cricket is played even today. 

However, in the US, cricket never really took off. The reason for that is simple — it always had a tough time competing with baseball, which is practically a national sport. However, the immigrants from the West Indies and Southeast Asia have kept the sport alive, especially after Willow TV came to the market and brought live matches and recaps from the Indian Premier League (IPL), the Big Bash League, and other leading competitions. 

We can also note another worthy cricket ally that’s been on the horizon as of late — sports betting. Namely, many betting sites in the United States are now offering cricket markets. Leagues such as the IPL, Pakistan Super League, Caribbean Premier League, T20 Blast, and others draw a lot of wagers in top sportsbooks, characterized by competitive odds and multiple betting markets. 

Even so, challenging major league sports was still out of the question, despite some 4 million subscribers Willow TV has in the States. Until recently, that is. 

Namely, in 2022, USA Cricket announced that it partnered with American Cricket Enterprises (ACE), a group backed by Willow TV and The Times of India Group, to create a professional US T20 cricket league. Teams from Los Angeles, New Jersey, Atlanta, Chicago, New York, and San Francisco will likely be the first ones in. The $1 billion investment will hopefully lead to the creation of not only Major League Cricket but also dedicated cricket venues across the country in these key cities. 

What’s more, USA Cricket said that ACE would provide the necessary backing for the USA men’s and women’s national teams and help tap into the unexplored potential of the sport in the country. Additional cricket turf pitches will be constructed so that international and domestic competitions can be staged. The backers for the new Major League Cricket go so far as to claim that a T20 World Cup will take place on US soil within the next decade. 

The start of the new league is scheduled for 2023, and the hype surrounding it is picking up steam. Due to the renewed interest in airing cricket games from premium television networks such as ESPN+ and Disney+ HotStar, the viewership is bound to increase substantially. 

Consequently, the companies and teams will surely capitalize on the growing enthusiasm from cricket fans across the country. For example, when the English Premier League was televised nationally, its popularity skyrocketed, and cricket is likely to follow a similar path. 

New branding, strong leadership, and huge backing from entrepreneurs with a passion for cricket are bound to result in a competitive T20 league that will attract a lot of talent. In the minor-league tournament hosted last year, over 4,000 individuals registered in the draft, a lot of them being former professional athletes looking to start playing again.

Of course, everyone at ACE and USA Cricket makes sure to exercise due caution, especially considering the T20 Pro League (founded about 15 years ago) was canceled after only one season. No one wants a repeat of that, and with the necessary funding, nationally televised matches, it seems Major League Cricket has a great future ahead of it.