5-team cricket "very likely" to feature in 2028 Olympics: Reports

Cricket is "very likely" to return to the Olympics after 128 years in the 2028 edition in Los Angeles, according to a report by The Guardian.

The sport, if included in the Games, will be played in the T20 format. Both men's and women's teams will fight for the gold medal. The five top teams according to the International Cricket Rankings (ICC) will battle it out for the gold.

The report said the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will see major financial benefits in the development. Broadcasting rights in India for the 2024 Paris Olympics are reported to be £15.6m (₹165 crore) which could rise to £150m (₹1585 crore) for 2028 if cricket is included.

"Commercial arrangements" are said to be the only "stumbling block" currently. That means it's now crucial that the 2024 men's T20 World Cup which will be jointly hosted by the US and the West Indies is a success.

Recent reports suggested that it might be moved to England due to infrastructural issues but were denied by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

ICC has been working for a long time to take the sport to the Olympics. The steps taken included convincing the BCCI to come under the purview of India's National Anti-Doping Agency, an affiliate of the World Anti-Doping Agency, and assuaging ECB's concerns as well. Cricket returning to the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in 2022 was seen as a positive sign in this regard as well.

If successful, the development will open the sport to a wider audience and might act as a catalyst for its growth in the US.

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Has cricket featured in the Olympics before?

Cricket featured at the event just once in the 1900 Paris Olympics, but that was just a one-off game between two teams, one from Great Britain and one from France. However, neither country took it seriously.

The former sent a touring club called 'Devon and Somerset Wanderers' while the French were just a squad of local club cricketers.