Islamabad, Oct 22: LA Olympics 2028 Changes Cricket Venue Plans to Accommodate India
To better serve cricket fans from the Indian subcontinent for the future LA Olympics, the Los Angeles (LA) 2028 Olympic organizers are reportedly thinking of relocating cricket tournaments from California to the U.S. East Coast.
Because of the time difference between the two countries, the relocation aims to give more favorable match schedules.
Since New York is in a more convenient time zone for Indian viewers, Casey Wasserman, the head of the LA28 organizing group, has confirmed that the cricket matches will most likely take place there.
Moving the games to New York, which is 9.5 hours behind Indian Standard Time (IST), could see matches start around 8 PM IST, making them more accessible for cricket fans in India and neighboring countries. In contrast, a prime-time match in Los Angeles would air early in the morning in India, which would affect viewership.
East Coast matches were scheduled for prime-time Indian viewing at the Twenty20 World Cup earlier this year, using the similar strategy.
For ICC, India continues to be the most economically advantageous region in the globe, and the organization makes every effort to guarantee that they compete in all authorized tournaments.
Eight World Cup matches, including the contentious match between India and Pakistan, were held in Nassau County.
The concept has, nevertheless, generated some debate. Aside from the scheduling issues, locating a suitable location is logistically difficult because the modular stadium used for the T20 World Cup in Long Island, New York, was taken down after the competition.
Other possible locations are Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Dallas, Texas, both of which have held World Cup games but have their own set of difficulties.
Cricket will be making a comeback at the LA Olympics for the first time since 1900 when it was last played in Paris.
