(Reuters) -A temporary stadium at the Fairgrounds in Pomona, Southern California, will stage men's and women's cricket at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 but the host United States team cannot take their place in the competition for granted.
Cricket, one of the five new sports in Los Angeles, will return to the Olympics after 128 years, featuring six teams each in the men's and women's competition in the 20-overs format.
International Cricket Council chairman Jay Shah was pleased with the venue named by the organisers on Tuesday.
"Although cricket is a hugely popular sport, it will be a fantastic opportunity to expand traditional boundaries when it features in the Olympics in the fast-paced, exciting T20 format that should appeal to new audiences," Shah said in a statement.
The ICC declined to comment on the qualification process for the tournament when contacted by Reuters.
An official, who attended the governing body's meeting in Harare last weekend, said the ICC had yet to determine how to pick the six teams for the LA Games.
"Cricket is returning to the Olympics after such a long time and you naturally want to showcase the best talents," the official told Reuters, requesting anonymity.
"You'd ideally like to send the top six teams in the men's and women's sections, which is why it's tough to say whether the US will play.
"They are not a full-member (of the ICC) but being the Olympic hosts, the US naturally have a claim to be there, which makes it such a tough decision."
The U.S. co-hosted the T20 World Cup in 2024 along with West Indies.
They currently rank 18th in the men's T20 list and 26th in the women's table.
Like at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, a single member nation could represent West Indies should the region make the cut, the official said.
The England and Wales Cricket Board is in talks with its Scotland counterpart for a combined Britain team, the BBC reported.
(Reporting by Amlan Chakraborty in New Delhi; editing by Ken Ferris)
