3 things cricket will gain if it gets selected for 2028 LA Olympics

After some disappointing news that cricket was out of contention for a place at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, the latest development states that there is still hope.

As per a recent report in ESPNcricinfo, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has recommended six-team T20 events for both men and women to the 2028 LA Olympic Games organizing committee (LA28).

The report added that a final call on ICC’s proposal will be taken by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) around October this year. LA28 organizers are set to finalize the list of new sports by March, which will be ratified at the IOC's session in Mumbai, which is likely to take place around October.

If the ICC’s proposal is accepted by the IOC, the top six men’s and women’s teams as per the official T20I rankings on a cut-off date could be seen participating in the LA Games in 2028.

Cricket has been played at the Olympics just once, during the 1900 Paris Games. We analyze three ways cricket will gain if it is selected as a sport for the 2028 LA Olympics.

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#1 It will be the first step towards gaining recognition as a global sport

IPL 2022 winners Gujarat Titans (GT). Pic: BCCI

Despite the Indian Premier League (IPL) being the second most lucrative sporting league in the world, the fact remains that, at the international level, cricket is still only played by a handful of countries.

Twelve nations have Test status, a format considered the most sacrosanct of the three versions. Even among them, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, Ireland, and Afghanistan only play a handful of games. So it’s basically down to eight main nations to keep the format alive.

Limited-overs cricket provides more opportunities to smaller sides like Namibia, the Netherlands, Oman, UAE, and Scotland, among many others. But their chances are limited since they only feature in big tournaments like the ODI World Cup or the T20 World Cup.

In short, cricket still has a long way to go before it can establish itself as a global sport. Featuring at the LA 2028 Olympics will be the starting point in that direction.

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#2 Presence at the Olympics can only help the popularity of cricket

The LA28 Olympic mural by artist Steven Harrington. Pic: Getty Images

Cricket is a hugely popular sport in India and the sub-continent as a whole. Australia and South Africa also have a decent population of the cricket-loving public. But going beyond that, the reach of the sport is not that impressive. This is specifically one of the reasons why the ICC has been pushing extremely hard for cricket’s inclusion in the Olympics.

Unlike cricket, which, with all due respect to the sport, is only followed passionately by a handful of countries, the Olympics is the greatest sporting event ever. It is considered the benchmark for sporting excellence, with thousands of athletes from around the world participating in a variety of events.

For cricket to even feature in the Games is a big deal in itself. Its presence in the Olympics, hopefully in 2028 and beyond, can only aid the popularity of the sport.

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#3 It will be a boost to ICC’s hopes of expanding the game

Teams like Namibia have to wait for the World Cup to make their presence felt. Pic: Getty Images

The ICC has made it very clear on numerous occasions that they are keen on expanding cricket beyond a sport that is played regularly by a few countries. As part of this endeavor, the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup will be a 14-team, 54-match event in 2027 and 2031.

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will be expanded to a 20-team, 55-match event in 2024, 2026, 2028, and 2030. To their credit, the game’s governing body is also taking genuine steps to expand the footprints of women’s cricket.

Participating in the Olympics will be a major boost to ICC’s ambitions of growing the game of cricket even further. By featuring in the LA 2028 games, they will be able to cater to a global crowd.

If the sport does manage to strike a chord with some of the new audiences, that can only be viewed as a positive - a possible starting point towards cricket gaining acceptance as a popular sport on the world stage. Fingers crossed!

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