Watchlords

The storied British game of cricket was the top sport in the United States in the mid-1800s. Now, the backers of a new league believe Americans will once again embrace professional cricket — and they are putting their dollars behind a new league to prove it.

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan and a host of Indian American tech executives, including Microsoft Chairman Satya Nadella, are among the prominent investors in Major League Cricket, a professional league that will begin playing matches in 2022. The league originally intended to launch later this year, but it pushed back operations because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

League co-founders say they hope to tap into a market of fans — the vast majority of whom hail from South Asia and the Caribbean — who yearn for the chance to root for a local professional team.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-amer ... e-n1255863

Why the fuck should it? If I want to be bored, I can watch baseball.

Sure, cricket can make it. I mean, even Consumer Cellular is a big hit.

The short-forms of the game (20 - 50 overs) are likely to do well. One thing that might work is if the US forms some teams for an IPL like comp.

A properly international IPL like comp would be cool

Very interesting. America's population is large enough that it may be able to sustain a league, even if it would only ever be a niche sport.

What's the sporting landscape like in the USA? I understand that NFL, NBA and baseball are the main sports, but are they growing / steady / declining? Do most kids play and watch sport/s? Adults?

Here we mainly have football (AFL or rugby, more or less depending on geography) and cricket. Football is by far the most popular sport, and is loved by people of all ages, sexes, and walks of life. Cricket is nowhere near as broadly popular, but still has large legions of fans. The next 'tier' of popular sports - probably soccer, basketball, tennis - are a long way off in terms of viewing numbers, and (anecdotally) probably playing numbers.

AFL, in particular, just seems to get bigger and bigger every year. Cricket has also been boosted by the 20/20 format in recent years. I agree with Carl, it would be awesome to see some American teams playing in an international 20/20 series.

If cornhole can be a televised sport, why not?

It's no Keeping up with the Kardashians, but I'm sure someone will watch it.

Jiminy ?

Yep, they are already here.
Makes it easier to fall asleep during a warm summer night.........but if they make it inside the home, it becomes a whole nother sport.

Did that answer the question?

bedlam wrote: ↑

February 3rd 2021, 11:56pm

The short-forms of the game (20 - 50 overs) are likely to do well. One thing that might work is if the US forms some teams for an IPL like comp.

A properly international IPL like comp would be cool

I read (seriously now) that American sports fans didn't have the patience for the depth of strategies and sheer length of gameplay in cricket that English sports fans do. Therefore a shorter match length would be needed. This makes sense - English fans love the skulduggery of cricket, whereas in the USA baseball is accompanied by hotdogs and a Baldwin organ :).

What other countries do about Test cricket I don't know - I suspect they play it because they love to have a go at beating England.

Someone I know once loudly declaimed cricket as "stupid" because the men ran back and forth. I asked him if running around a square was by definition any more dignified.

Yep. It’s a big hit - just like other American pastimes such as croquet, jai lai, futbol/soccer, chess, and reading!

T20 would do well I think. Way better than baseball. Never found those matches boring compared to baseball.

I am surprised though there isn't a team in Florida, Miami area specifically. So many from the Caribbean now reside in central and southern Florida so it would seem there is a fan base already in place for a team.

Here's the thing about Americans and their sports...

If it is complex, it must involve brutal contact. See American Football and ice hockey.

If it is simple, it must involve fast play. See basketball.

If it involves fast cars, they must go in circles. See NASCAR.

If it is slow paced, it must involve beer, high fat food and bathroom breaks. See baseball.

Anything else will never make it big here. NEVER!

biglove wrote: ↑

February 4th 2021, 1:57pm

Here's the thing about Americans and their sports...

If it is complex, it must involve brutal contact. See American Football and ice hockey.

If it is simple, it must involve fast play. See basketball.

If it involves fast cars, they must go in circles. See NASCAR.

If it is slow paced, it must involve beer, high fat food and bathroom breaks. See baseball.

Anything else will never make it big here. NEVER!

I agree with the above statements.

Cricket is too sedate. Anything slower than baseball will not make it in America. Except golf. Why golf is such a hit on tv in America, I'll never know. And I played it for many years.

However, there's a growing couch potato population that will watch anything, including people furiously sweeping ice in front of a block of granite sliding down ice before it hits other pieces of granite. I also don't understand the allure of soccer in this country; I think ESPN is desperately trying to foist the game upon us but I'm not buying it. 90 minutes of nil-nil and then some penalty kicks at the end. A lot of fake injury acting in between and drunk fans singing songs I don't recognize.

bbattle wrote: ↑

February 4th 2021, 5:33pm

biglove wrote: ↑

February 4th 2021, 1:57pm

Here's the thing about Americans and their sports...

If it is complex, it must involve brutal contact. See American Football and ice hockey.

If it is simple, it must involve fast play. See basketball.

If it involves fast cars, they must go in circles. See NASCAR.

If it is slow paced, it must involve beer, high fat food and bathroom breaks. See baseball.

Anything else will never make it big here. NEVER!

I agree with the above statements.

Cricket is too sedate. Anything slower than baseball will not make it in America. Except golf. Why golf is such a hit on tv in America, I'll never know. And I played it for many years.

However, there's a growing couch potato population that will watch anything, including people furiously sweeping ice in front of a block of granite sliding down ice before it hits other pieces of granite. I also don't understand the allure of soccer in this country; I think ESPN is desperately trying to foist the game upon us but I'm not buying it. 90 minutes of nil-nil and then some penalty kicks at the end. A lot of fake injury acting in between and drunk fans singing songs I don't recognize.

The pinnacle for me is the new hype of watching gamers play games.

I almost switched but I stayed with Verizon.

biglove wrote: ↑

February 4th 2021, 1:57pm

Here's the thing about Americans and their sports...

If it is complex, it must involve brutal contact. See American Football and ice hockey.

If it is simple, it must involve fast play. See basketball.

If it involves fast cars, they must go in circles. See NASCAR.

If it is slow paced, it must involve beer, high fat food and bathroom breaks. See baseball.

Anything else will never make it big here. NEVER!

That's about it :). Sport is closer to entertainment in the USA than it is in other countries. In South America and the Med, football is passion, and in England and Scotland its about tribalism.