Cricket at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games to feature six-team T20 format

Cricket is set to make its return to the Olympic Games after a 128-year absence. The sport last featured in the 1900 Paris Games, where Great Britain defeated a French team (largely composed of British expatriates) to win the gold medal in the only Olympic cricket match to date.

Fast forward to today, and a total of 90 athlete quotas have been allocated for each gender, allowing each team to name a 15-member squad for LA 2028.

No mention has been made of how teams will qualify for the global showpiece. South Africa is currently ranked sixth in the official ICC T20I men's rankings and fifth in the women's.

"Cricket's inclusion at LA 2028 follows a growing trend of the sport making an appearance at different multi-sport events," said the IOC.

"A men's cricket tournament was held at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, while the women's game made its CWG debut at Birmingham 2022.

"Both men's and women's cricket tournaments, played in the popular T20 format, were part of the Asian Games in 2010, 2014 and 2023.

"Eight teams participated at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games while at the Hangzhou Asian Games, 14 teams competed in the men's event while nine played the women's competition."

IOC also approved the inclusion of four other games for LA2 208, including baseball/softball, flag football, lacrosse (sixes) and squash.