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With investments flowing into Major League Cricket, or MLC, the sport is hoping to have its moment in the U.S.
Let’s unravel this trend:
Let’s unravel this trend:
American Cricket Enterprises, the U.S. group that plans to launch MLC in 2022 recently received an investment from the Knight Riders Group.
Knight Riders Group is majority owned by Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan.
@iamsrk is the king of Bollywood:
— a $600M net worth
— more than 3.5B fans worldwide
— over 23.6M Instagram followers
— Has starred in 80 movies
@iamsrk is the king of Bollywood:
— a $600M net worth
— more than 3.5B fans worldwide
— over 23.6M Instagram followers
— Has starred in 80 movies
Khan and his Knight Rider Group have a history of success in the T20 format of cricket. The Kolkata Knight Riders are two-time Indian Premier League champions and the Trinbago Knight Riders of the Caribbean Premier League have won the league title four of the last six seasons.
MLC’s parent company American Cricket Enterprises is selling ownership interests in the league — rather than individual franchises — but it plans for most investors to eventually adopt a team as their own. The league is expected to launch with six teams.
Even though cricket is not mainstream in the U.S., it has a sizable audience for the diaspora that follows it.
Cricket In The U.S.:
— Estimated 150,000 regular players
— 20M fans
— More than 4M regular viewers
Cricket In The U.S.:
— Estimated 150,000 regular players
— 20M fans
— More than 4M regular viewers
Major League Cricket recently received approval on a long-term lease to redevelop the stadium that formerly housed independent league baseball team Texas Airhogs as the first major cricket stadium in the United States.
The league is counting on the global appeal of the sport to bring in American fans. But the promised growth really depends on how well received the T20 format — a shorter, 3-hour form of the game — is by American fans.
