CPL momentum expected to jumpstart Sabina cricket | Sports
Stakeholders are projecting that the economic and cultural momentum generated by the return of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) will help drive higher attendance and commercial success for next year’s international matches at Sabina Park.
After a subdued start, more than 26,000 fans attended matches over four days as the CPL returned to Jamaican cricket’s Mecca for the first time since 2019.
The Jamaica Kingsmen, watched by 3,500 fans on Tuesday, August 18, lost their first game at Sabina Park. Despite that setback, 5,800 patrons turned out for their second match on Thursday, August 20, which also ended in defeat.
However, after 8,450 fans cheered them to their first win of the season last Saturday, another 8,500 spectators passed through the turnstiles for their victory last Tuesday.
Venues have not yet been confirmed, but the West Indies Women are scheduled to host Pakistan in December this year and England next April, while the men’s team is expected to face leading opposition, including India and England, in 2027.
Although the final figures are not yet available, stakeholders believe the CPL’s return to the largest English-speaking country in the Caribbean by population signalled a boost for the economy.
Peter Miller, the CPL’s head of public relations and communications, told The Gleaner that the franchise would partner with experts to assess the tournament’s economic impact using empirical data.
“But what I can tell you is that there was a significant cohort. Just the way to look at it from an arrivals point of view is just the CPL arriving represents a significant number of people coming into the country. You had the teams coming in, you know, obviously the Kingsmen team, all of whom stayed at hotels in New Kingston, filling up rooms. Then the visiting teams as well. We’ve had the TV crew there for 10 to 11 days who are, you know, boys that enjoy going out and spending money in restaurants and in taxis,” said Miller.
He also pointed to the number of family members and supporters who travelled from overseas, boosting hotel occupancy during a period when Kingston traditionally experiences lower occupancy levels.
“I know from looking at the Trinidad and Guyana matches, there were a lot of people that had come into Kingston just to follow their team, both from the US and from the US diaspora and from the countries themselves. So it does tend to end up representing significant inward-bound tourist numbers,” said Miller.
Miller described Jamaica as a very important market for the CPL, noting that fan support compared favourably with that seen elsewhere in the tournament.
“I think, you know, it’s year one, and I think it will build. And it’s year one of a new brand, but to see the level of people that we saw attend the matches as the games went on, and what we saw is attendance increased as the games went on. I think it will only get better from that point of view. Jamaica’s a hugely important market for us,” argued Miller.
As the Jamaica Cricket Association (JCA) looks ahead to celebrating its centenary in 2027, president Dr Donovan Bennett is hoping Sabina Park will host some of the marquee fixtures.
“One of the things that we have going in Jamaica, unlike a lot of countries in the Caribbean, the population here comes out to watch cricket. You get crowds in Jamaica, and even some of the West Indies players will tell you that they prefer playing in Jamaica to anywhere else because that ‘12th man’ is out there pushing them and cheering them along. That’s a very important factor in any sport,” Bennett told The Gleaner.
He said 2027 will be a landmark year in Jamaican cricket.
“Next year is a very exciting year. Not only is the Jamaica Cricket Association 100 years old next year, so we have to put something on, it’s our centenary, but India and England will be touring the Caribbean next year. So all of what has happened here, I think, has put us in a pretty good place to be able to get some of those tours being played in Jamaica,” said Bennett.