Cricket set to be added to Los Angeles 2028 Olympics roster

Popular sport likely to be included following recommendation of organisers

Olympic rings in front of the International Olympic Committee headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland. Reuters

Cricket has moved one step closer to becoming an Olympic sport after the International Cricket Council announced that organisers of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics have decided to recommend the sport for inclusion.

Cricket, arguably the second most popular sport in the world, would return after appearing once before at the 1900 Games. It brought tremendous success for women's cricket at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. Also, the recent Asian Games in Hangzhou included T20 cricket.

Following a two-year process, in which the ICC worked closely with LA28, the list of sports to be added now includes cricket. The organisers' recommendations will be subject to final approval by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), with a session set for Mumbai later this month.

ICC chairman Greg Barclay said: “We are delighted that LA28 have recommended cricket for inclusion in the Olympics.

“While this is not the final decision, it is a very significant landmark towards seeing cricket at the Olympics for the first time in more than a century.

“I’d like to thank LA28 for their support during the new sport evaluation process over last two years and we look forward to the final decision being taken at the IOC Session, in India, during the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup next week.”

Lacrosse, squash, baseball, softball and flag football are set to be included in the 2028 Games as well.