But the battle for the hearts (and wallets) of Americans can’t be compared to the impact the football World Cup held in the US in 1994 had on soccer in the country.
Fans on social media have complained that cricket world cup matches in the US are not shown on mainstream broadcasters. And the big match-ups like India vs Pakistan in New York this weekend are played in the morning (making it prime time evening TV in India).
These two arch-rivals rarely play each other because of diplomatic tensions. But when they do, it’s a blockbuster match-up.
The 2011 World Cup semi-final was watched by more than 400 million people. To compare, the most recent Super Bowl had a global television audience of around 250 million.
Ali Zar, who owns Zar Sports – one of only a handful of cricket stores in New York – says the India-Pakistan match being played at the new Nassau County International Cricket Stadium outside of New York City on Sunday is the one people are waiting for.
“There is no rivalry that you can explain India versus Pakistan. This is its own class. This is on a different level,” he told the BBC.
“Let’s say Pakistan wins and India loses, everybody’s gonna break their TVs. If India wins, Pakistan loses, in their countries people are gonna be very upset for a couple of days. And they’re going to start breaking their TVs.”