Cricket will return to the Olympics in Los Angeles (Photo by INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP via Getty … [+]
The cricket competition for the Los Angeles Olympics might not be played on the west coast – despite the determined efforts from administrators in several cities – and could instead be entirely housed on the other side of the U.S to maximize the massive viewership in India.
As reported recently by Sportico, the LA 2028 local committee chair Casey Wasserman revealed at the Texas Business of Sports Summit in Austin that the cricket competition was likely to be played on the east coast although he did not name specific cities.
Organizers are hoping that cricket – obsessively followed in India and surrounding countries – will help reel in a South Asian audience not traditionally enamoured with the Olympics.
Cricket has not been played at the Olympics since 1900 (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Playing the entire competition on the east coast, which cuts the time difference with India down from 12 to nine hours, appears a strategy to maximise viewership in South Asia, which boasts around a quarter of the world’s population.
But options could be limited due to the logistical challenges of finding suitable cricket infrastructure marked by oval shaped grounds and a pitch in the middle. New York is the obvious destination having staged eight T20 World Cup matches at its $30 million modular stadium in Long Island.
The cricket ground was torn down immediately after the tournament, but billionaire Mukesh Ambani, the owner of MI New York, reportedly has plans to build a world-class facility in the famous city.
If the Olympic competition is entirely based on the east coast, it would be a disappointment for administrators in several key cricket locales. Power brokers from San Francisco Unicorns and Seattle Orcas, franchises in Major League Cricket, have been scouting for permanent grounds that could be used for the 2028 Games.
A home ground for the Orcas has been planned at King County’s Marymoor Park, around 15 miles from Seattle, and likely to hold about 6000-8000 fans. It is hoped to be ready by the 2026 season.
“My hope is Seattle has a stadium up and running by then because we have as much potential to host Olympic (cricket) games as anyone else,” Orcas co-owner Soma Somasegar told me recently.
The Unicorns had earmarked a site in Santa Clara, but are currently widening their search although the ground will most likely be in the Silicon Valley.
“We’re looking at Santa Clara but also a couple of other options as well. I think we’ll have more clarity around that next year,” Unicorns co-owner Anand Rajaraman told me recently.
“That (having a stadium before 2028 Games) is our hope and ambition, so that we can get it done in time for the LA Olympics.
“That’s an internal deadline that we’re working towards. And clearly a lot depends on getting the support of the local government…wherever that is…to get things done in time, to get the permit approvals done.”
Cricket will end a 128-year Olympic drought in Los Angeles (Photo by Matt Roberts-ICC/ICC via Getty … [+]
A qualification format for the cricket competition has yet to be officially locked in, but it’s been mooted that Olympic spots would be allocated to the top six in the ICC’s men’s and women’s T20 rankings at a cut-off date.
The exact number of teams – and the qualification route – will be ironed out next year when the event programme and athlete quotas are finalized for the 2028 Olympics.
