Cricket Scotland and ECB in Talks to Form Team GB for LA28 Olympics

Cricket Scotland and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have begun discussions to potentially create combined men’s and women’s cricket teams under the Team GB banner for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. This move could mark a historic moment as cricket returns to the Olympics after more than a century.

Cricket Returns to the Olympics: LA28 Games

The inclusion of cricket in the LA28 Olympics was confirmed last year, bringing the sport back to the Olympic stage for the first time since 1900. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has proposed six-team T20 cricket tournaments for both men’s and women’s competitions at the 2028 Olympics. These events are expected to last about a week, with each tournament likely taking place consecutively.

Team GB Cricket: A New Olympic Opportunity

As cricket prepares for its Olympic comeback, the process of Olympic cricket team qualification is still being defined. The ICC’s T20 International rankings are expected to play a significant role in determining which teams will participate. For the Olympics, England will compete as part of Team GB, aligning with the broader Olympic structure. This opens up the exciting possibility of Scottish players, like Brandon McMullen or Sarah and Kathryn Bryce, joining forces with English players under the Team GB cricket banner.

Cricket Scotland is eager to contribute to the formation of Team GB’s cricket teams, engaging in preliminary discussions with the ECB. They are advocating for significant involvement, including the selection of players, coaching staff, and other support roles. However, the ECB is anticipated to serve as the primary governing body for Team GB cricket.

“With the Los Angeles Olympics just four years away, our discussions with Team GB and Cricket Scotland are in the early stages,” an ECB spokesperson shared with CricFlick.ca. “The return of cricket to the Olympics is a thrilling prospect, and we are looking forward to collaborating to ensure our success on this global stage.”

Building a Unified Team GB Cricket Team

Andy Anson, Chief Executive of the British Olympic Association and Chairman of Lancashire Cricket, highlighted the potential for collaboration: “We have successfully unified the Four Nations—England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland—in other Olympic sports like golf, rugby, and women’s football. We expect cricket to follow a similar path, with the ECB taking the lead in close cooperation with Cricket Scotland.”

Team GB represents Great Britain and Northern Ireland in the Olympics. Athletes from Northern Ireland can choose to compete for either Team GB or Ireland. However, given that cricket is organized on an all-Ireland basis, top Northern Irish cricketers such as Mark Adair and Paul Stirling are more likely to represent Ireland than Team GB.

Venues and Challenges for Cricket in LA28

The venue for cricket at the 2028 Olympics has yet to be finalized. Potential options include a new stadium in Great Park, Irvine, which is being developed by the Los Angeles Knight Riders in partnership with Major League Cricket. The Oakland Coliseum has also been mentioned as a possible venue for the cricket events.

The involvement of the West Indies in Olympic cricket presents some complexities, but there is a precedent from the 2022 Commonwealth Games, where Barbados represented the West Indies as the winner of the Women’s T20 Blaze.

Cricket’s inclusion in the LA28 Olympics adds another marquee event to what will be a busy summer for England’s men’s cricket team, with six Test matches and limited-overs series against Australia and India already scheduled.