Cricket will make its return in the Olympic games after 128 years as the sport is set to be featured in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Now, the International Olympic Committee has confirmed that a total six teams each in men’s and women’s category will be seen fighting for gold in cricket in the next Olympics. Apart from that, IOC also confirmed that a total 180 players will feature in cricket with 90 players each in men’s and women’s category.
Notably, cricket is one of the five new sports that are being introduced in the 2028 Oympics. The other four sports are squash, flag football, baseball/softball, and lacrosse. However, IOC is yet to announce the qualification criteria for cricket. The sport will be played in the T20 format where the hosts USA are likely to get a direct qualification.
ICC Chairman Jay Shah working on cricket’s future in Olympic games
This will be the first time that cricket will be played in the Olympics games after 1900. Now, the current ICC Chairman is working to give cricket a long run in the Olympic games starting with Brisbane in 2032. Notably, the process to include the sport in the LA games was started way back in 2021 with ICC and LA28 Organising Committee working together.
However, cricket was played in the 2022 Commonwealth games but only in the women's category. In October 2023, cricket was finalised to be included in the 2028 Olympics along with four other new sports.
