Power Play: Making Cricket a Home-Run in the Americas 🏏
Despite their similarities as bat-and-ball sports, the 'Venn diagram of fandom' for MLB and cricket doesn’t overlap significantly. This offers a great opportunity for both sports to expand their reach
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On the same day as the London Series when the Mets played the Phillies at the London Stadium, the ICC T20 World Cup was taking place in America, with India playing Pakistan in front of a sell-out crowd in a 34,000-capacity temporary stadium in New York City.
Despite their similarities as bat-and-ball sports, the 'Venn diagram of fandom' for Major League Baseball (MLB) and cricket doesn’t overlap significantly. This offers a tremendous opportunity for both sports to expand their reach by partnering with each other, tapping into new and diverse audiences.
This simultaneous celebration of both sports has brought that potential for collaboration to the fore - but is something that both have already been exercising.
As Ben Ladkin, Managing Director for MLB Europe, highlighted on the Sports Pundit Podcast last week,
"You can view it as a competitor, that it's a bat and ball sport. Do people just want to follow one bat and ball sport? or actually, what we look at is it's very complementary," Ladkin explains.
"If you're a cricket fan you can understand a bit more of the cadence and a bit more of how it's played and what's going on. You're used to the sort of similarities that we have in the sport."
Leveraging these similarities has been a strategic move for MLB Europe.
Their marketing efforts include the use of England T20 captain Jos Buttler in their recent video campaign for the London Series and a sponsorship deal with England teammate Harry Brook, who prominently displays the MLB logo on his cricket bat.
"Harry Brook went across the spring training last year and hit with the St. Louis Cardinals. They were very impressed when he got in the [batting] cage. They're like, what's this Brit going to be like? And then he starts just welling the ball out of the park pretty quickly."
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has mirrored this approach, particularly in North America. Ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup, hosted in the U.S. and West Indies, the ICC hosted a cricket night at a Toronto Blue Jays game during their trophy tour in Canada.
Fara Gorsi, ICC Development Manager for the Americas, explained on the most recent episode of the Sports Pundit Podcast,
"Bringing it to a major league baseball (MLB) game in Canada with the Blue Jays was amazing. Many people were keen to understand what cricket was.
Additionally, the Indian Cricket Team's presence at a New York Yankees game and their collaboration with the NBA during the playoffs further exemplified the potential of cross-sport promotions. As noted in JohnWallStreet, a social video content piece featuring Indian cricket stars and the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy outperformed all other NBA playoff content up until that point.
Ultimately, the crossover appeal of cricket and baseball or basketball is about increasing brand visibility in untapped markets.
As Gorsi notes, “I jokingly said to a friend [at the Blue Jays game], ‘We're piggybacking off your sport for our sport to be noticed.’”
"Vice versa with basketball and that interaction piece where they are trying to make basketball huge in India and we're trying to do the opposite of bringing cricket in the USA. Initiatives like that go a long way, especially if you're not a baseball fan or if you're not a cricket fan. It makes people curious to Google what cricket is."
MLB is also making strides to grow its brand in India, recognising it as an exciting growth market. Plans include a new content series designed to connect the Indian population with baseball, utilising platforms like YouTube and linear television. With India’s massive population and the success of cricket there, this initiative represents a significant opportunity for MLB to gain a foothold in a major international market.
The potential for cross-promotion extends beyond cricket and baseball or basketball. Other sports can adopt similar strategies to reach new audiences and strengthen their global presence.
Only last week did we see Manchester City announce a partnership with WWE, launching an exclusive merchandise collection.
This is just another example of how sports can mutually benefit from each other’s strengths and fan bases. This cross-promotion is bringing together fans from both worlds, expanding the WWE and Man City’s reach, but also enriching the sports culture by introducing their fans to new and exciting games.
Which sports or sports teams do you think would benefit most from a similar collaborative approach?
PODCAST
Want to hear more from my conversation with Fara?
We discuss the impact of the U.S. beating Pakistan, the overall legacy of the T20 Cricket World Cup, the role of Major League Cricket in continuing fan engagement, whether cricket could become a college sport, looking forward to LA28, and much, much more.
Listen to the full podcast via the link below - and I’d love to hear what you think! 👇
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The Big Idea is brought to you by the Global Institute of Sport!
The Global Institute of Sport is the leading destination for Master's degrees, executive education and professional qualifications in sport around the world.
They count world-famous stadiums and surrounding venues among their state-of-the-art campus facilities across the globe, including London's Wembley Stadium, Miami's DRV PNK Stadium and Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Ready to master the global sports industry? Enquire today about their in-person and online courses.
