Key Highlights
- Once confined to a narrow geographical footprint and playing in only a limited number of countries, there are now 108 member nations affiliated with the ICC.
- This is almost a 40% increase in membership in the last two decades. Cricket's growth is no longer occurring in its traditional centres of power, but across Europe, non-traditional Asian markets and the Americas - regions now central to cricket's long-term vision of becoming a permanent Olympic sport. A Game Growing Outside Its Comfort Zone Cricket Global BoomAccording to a study by Sport for Business, cricket's global television and digital audience was 2.5 billion in 2025.
- This made it the second-most-watched sport in the world, behind only football. Commercial revenues have crossed $6 billion annually, driven by broadcast rights valued at around $4.2 billion.
- There has also been a 340% rise in sponsorship from non-traditional markets since 2020. Cricket's Growth In Europe Italy Have Qualified For The T20 World Cup 2026Europe has a key role to play in cricket's global expansion.
- According to the 2025 census by ICC Europe, there are around 2.8 million active cricketers as of 2025, which is a 65% rise since 2020.
