Jay Shah meets NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in New York

New Delhi,UPDATED: Jun 11, 2024 18:22 IST

BCCI Secretary Jay Shah met National Football League (NFL) Commissioner Roger Goodell at the league’s headquarters in New York. Notably, the BCCI hosts the Indian Premier League (IPL) every year, which is second most valuable sporting league in the world in terms of per-match value after the NFL. IPL media rights were sold for a whopping INR 48,390 Crore in 2022 which raised the T20 league’s stature in the global market.

During his meeting with Goodell, Shah was presented with a special NFL helmet with the BCCI logo and the Indian tricolour on it. In return, the BCCI Secretary presented the Indian jersey with Goodell’s name on the back with number ten of the legendary Sachin Tendulkar. Shah also held discussions with the NFL team where they exchanged ideas of improving fan engagement and experiences.

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“When the two biggest sporting leagues in the world unite! BCCI Honorary Secretary, Mr. @JayShah, visited the @NFL headquarters in New York to meet with Commissioner Mr. Roger Goodell and his distinguished team. This introductory meeting focused on sharing best practices, exchanging ideas, and elevating fan engagement and experiences,” BCCI shared the update on X.

The T20 World Cup 2024 is being jointly held in the West Indies and the USA to promote the game in new territories. The USA had its first introduction to cricket through the Cricket All Stars League held in 2015. The nation also has its first premier domestic T20 tournament with the beginning of the Major League Cricket in 2023.

MLC Granted List A Status

The league was also recently granted List A status by the ICC (International Cricket Council) meaning all the runs, wickets and other milestones achieved in the tournament will be documented as official career statistics. Three of the MLC teams are owned by the IPL team owners namely Los Angeles Knight Riders, MI New York and Texas Super Kings while the other three teams also have Indian investors.

MLC and the ongoing T20 World Cup is a giant leap towards making cricket popular in the USA. Shah’s meeting with Goodell could further pave the way for newer possibilities in the country regarding the popularity of cricket.