USA Cricket ends deal with strategic partner ACE

Published - 22 Aug 2025, 18:16 IST | Updated - 22 Aug 2025, 18:27 IST

USA Cricket (USAC) has formally terminated its long-standing agreement with American Cricket Enterprises (ACE), the commercial partner behind Major League Cricket (MLC). The partnership, signed in June 2019, granted ACE exclusive rights to operate a top-tier T20 league in the United States, commercialise national teams, and develop cricket infrastructure under a 50-year deal. Since then, ACE has invested an estimated USD 10 million into USA Cricket through sanction fees, player payments, and operating costs.

The decision to terminate was made during a three-hour USAC board meeting on August 21, led by Chairman Venu Pisike and Board Member David Haubert. They were backed by directors Srini Salver, Anj Balusu, and Pintoo Shah, who formed a close majority over protesting directors Nadia Gruny, Kuljit Nijjar, Atul Rai, and Arjun Gona. The vote has deepened existing divisions within the board, with Gruny already challenging the legitimacy of Pisike’s chairmanship under USA Cricket’s bylaws.

Legal and financial experts have expressed strong concerns about the move. USAC’s legal counsel warned the board that the termination was unlikely to survive arbitration, while an external attorney described the decision as ‘reckless’. CEO Johnathan Atkeison also cautioned that the organisation, which is already financially constrained and could be pushed to the brink of bankruptcy without ACE’s quarterly payments. Since July 2024, USA Cricket has been under ICC suspension, which means ICC funding is controlled directly by the global body, leaving USAC with limited financial flexibility.

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The dispute between USAC and ACE can be traced back to June 2025, when the board issued a termination warning outlining several alleged breaches. ACE responded in July with a point-by-point rebuttal. According to Cricbuzz, only two claims qualify as material breaches under the contract: failure to pay minimum guarantees and failure to construct a High Performance Center.

However, bank records reportedly confirm that ACE has been making minimum-guarantee payments on a quarterly basis. On the issue of the High Performance Center, ACE pointed to its Grand Prairie facility, which was developed in consultation with USA Cricket and has been approved by the ICC as a World Cup venue in 2024, arguing it exceeds the standards of most Associate nations.

The termination has immediate implications for the national teams. USAC and MLC had been collaborating on a $700,000 budget to support upcoming fixtures, including three ODIs and three T20s against West Indies A in October, along with USA Women’s matches against West Indies. These matches were to be played at MLC venues in Dallas and Morrisville, also serving as preparatory camps for the men’s, women’s, and junior programs. With the partnership now dissolved, the fixtures are in serious jeopardy, raising the possibility that the USA men’s team could enter the 2026 T20 World Cup with little T20 practice outside of ICC-arranged warm-ups.

Despite the fallout, USA Cricket has maintained that it wants MLC to continue, though the league’s future does not depend on USAC, as it is sanctioned by the ICC. ACE, however, is widely expected to challenge the termination in arbitration, pointing to its investments in the broader American cricket ecosystem and its long-term commitments. The standoff leaves US cricket governance at crossroads, with financial uncertainty, legal battles, and internal board disputes threatening to overshadow the sport’s progress in the US.