Major League Cricket enters its 3rd season in 2026, running from June 18 to July 18 with 6 teams playing 34 matches across the United States. The league represents cricket’s most significant push into the American sports market, backed by ownership groups connected to IPL franchises and featuring international stars alongside American-developed talent.
The 6 teams are Los Angeles Knight Riders, San Francisco Unicorns, Seattle Orcas, Texas Super Kings, Washington Freedom, and MI New York. The franchise names reflect the deep IPL ownership connections: Knight Riders (KKR), Super Kings (CSK), and MI (Mumbai Indians) all extend their brand into the American market. The championship final is on July 18.
MLC matches span multiple US time zones. West Coast venues operate on Pacific Daylight Time (UTC-7), Central venues on CDT (UTC-5), and East Coast on EDT (UTC-4). An evening match at 19:00 PDT in Los Angeles is 22:00 EDT in New York, 03:00 the next morning in London, and 08:30 the next morning in India. East Coast matches at 19:00 EDT are more accessible internationally: 23:00 in London and 04:30 in India. Check whatisthetime.now/los-angeles, whatisthetime.now/new-york, or whatisthetime.now/seattle for current local times.
The 2026 season runs concurrently with the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in England and overlaps with the start of The Hundred. For American cricket fans, MLC serves as the domestic anchor tournament, while the sport’s growth in the US was boosted by the 2024 T20 World Cup group stage matches held in New York and Dallas. Players like Rashid Khan, Travis Head, and other international stars rotate through MLC squads, bringing world-class cricket to American audiences.