American Cricket Enterprises (ACE) has responded to USA Cricket’s (USAC) termination of their agreement, calling the move “unlawful” and reaffirming its ongoing commitment to the U.S. cricket ecosystem. Since 2019, ACE says it has invested more than $150 million into the sport across infrastructure, leagues, and national team development.
ACE: Building U.S. cricket from the ground up
According to ACE, its investment has been the foundation for much of cricket’s recent growth in the United States. Its contributions include:
Launching Major League Cricket (MLC) and Minor League Cricket (MiLC), the first globally recognized U.S. leagues;
Developing world-class stadiums and high-performance facilities that have hosted national team events;
Creating domestic player pathways that have led to recent USA team success;
Helping deliver the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 in the U.S.;
Providing extensive financial support to USA Cricket operations and national teams.
Governance concerns and USAC’s decision
ACE criticized USAC’s timing and rationale for the termination, especially as it comes on the eve of the 2025 Minor League Cricket season. The organization claims USAC is acting in bad faith and ignoring repeated warnings from both the ICC and United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) regarding internal governance failures.
“USAC’s conduct undermines the hard work and dedication of all players, staff and team personnel involved in U.S. cricket,” ACE stated. “It jeopardizes MiLC, national team activities, and preparations for future ICC events and the LA28 Olympics.”
Contractual performance and financial support
ACE emphasized that it has met—and exceeded—its contractual obligations under the terminated agreement. This includes:
Providing full and timely financial payments;
Offering additional discretionary funding at USAC’s request, including to cover staff salaries;
Maintaining high-performance infrastructure used by USAC for training and events.
The statement also notes that USAC had asked ACE to negotiate a new agreement even while accusing ACE of noncompliance—an inconsistency ACE describes as “hypocritical.”
Call for board reform and future plans
ACE has urged the current USAC board to resign immediately, echoing past recommendations from the ICC and USOPC, and to allow for the appointment of independent, professionally qualified board members.
Despite the dispute, ACE insists it remains focused on long-term growth and stability for U.S. cricket. “ACE will not allow USAC’s tactics to undermine its continued development of a thriving, elite cricket ecosystem.”
ACE concluded by stating it will take all necessary steps to protect its stakeholders and the progress made over the past seven years in building U.S. cricket’s foundation.
