Empire State Building lit up to launch T20 World Cup 2024

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 Trophy Tour launched at New York’s Empire State Building, with star players lighting up the iconic skyscraper.

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 Trophy Tour has been launched at New York’s Empire State Building, with two-time champion Chris Gayle and USA star Ali Khan lighting up the iconic skyscraper in the navy and pink colours of the event.

An official ceremony to launch the biggest global T20 cricket event ever was held Tuesday with Gayle and Khan pulling the lever down to light up the Empire State Building, according to an ICC release.

READ: Major League Cricket makes Viacom18 media partner in India (July 10, 2023)

Sitting atop the 1250 feet skyscraper was the prize all 20 teams will be competing for across the West Indies and USA from 1-29 June, the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Trophy.

Following huge demand of more than three million ticket applications in the public ballot, additional tickets have been released to 51 of 55 matches, including to fixtures where allocations were previously exhausted.

Tickets are now available to matches in all nine host locations, ensuring as many fans as possible can attend. Fans can create an account and secure their World Cup experience at tickets.t20worldcup.com.

READ MORE: Cognizant joins Major League Cricket as title partner (March 15, 2024)

Also available now are a range of premium hospitality offerings inclusive of food and beverage packages for all fixtures at Nassau County International Stadium in New York and to all matches at West Indies venues at tickets.t20worldcup.com.

The event marks the first time an ICC World Cup will be held in the USA, including eight matches at the brand new, state of the art modular 34,000 capacity stadium in Nassau County, New York.

Newly renovated existing venues Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium in Dallas and Broward County Stadium in Lauderhill will each host four fixtures.

READ: Major League Cricket brings T20 competition to America (July 14, 2023)

Co-hosts West Indies who have won the T20 World Cup twice, have fixtures scheduled at popular Caribbean tourist destinations — Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Guyana, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago.

The ‘Out of this World’ Trophy Tour will reach 15 countries across four continents as it visits iconic sporting teams and stadia, famous landmarks and legendary cricketers, while also giving fans the chance to get a glimpse of T20 cricket’s biggest global prize.

READ: Breathtaking hundred by Heinrich Klaasen helps Seattle Orcas defeat MI New York (July 25, 2023)

In addition to visiting all host venues across the West Indies and USA, the Trophy will also visit emerging Americas cricket countries Argentina, Brazil and Canada – enabling new fans to connect with what will be a landmark event in the region.

Fans can follow Trophy Tour from wherever they are via ICC’s social channels and t20worldcup.com.

ICC General Manager, Marketing and Communications, Claire Furlong said, “With less than three months to go until the first ball of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, there is huge anticipation for what will be a historic event for cricket in the Americas.

READ: Washington Freedom was a no-brainer of an investment: Sanjay Govil (July 17, 2023)

“As we countdown to the World Cup, the Trophy Tour provides fans with the opportunity to be part of the event in locations across the globe. The Tour will travel extensively across the Americas, igniting the passion of both new and existing fans to share in the excitement of T20 cricket’s pinnacle global event coming to the region and what better way to kick it off than by lighting up one of the world’s most iconic buildings in one of the world’s most iconic cities.

“Cricket has more than a billion fans and we want to give as many people as possible the opportunity to get up close with the trophy that will be lifted by the winning captain in Barbados on 29 June.”

READ: If inaugural season is an indication, Major League Cricket is here to stay (July 31, 2023)

Meanwhile, USA Cricket has announced a new Men’s Selection Panel, “taking a pivotal step forward in our mission to elevate the national team’s competitiveness on the global stage.”

Including some who have donned the USA Men’s National Team jersey within the last ten years, the new panel is composed of Ravi Timbawala (Chair), Sunny Sohal, Barrington Bartley, Naseer Jamali and Agam Pandit.

The first official duty of the new selection panel will be to oversee the Men’s T20 National Championship currently going on in Prairie View, Texas. “This event not only showcases the nation’s top cricketing talent but also serves as a crucial step in assembling a wider squad in preparation for the T20 World Cup in June,” it said

READ: Will US cricket team qualify for T20 World Cup? (July 11, 2022)

The panel’s direct experience and recent involvement in international competitions equip them uniquely to identify and nurture the talent necessary to build a formidable team for the upcoming challenges, USA Cricket stated.