After years of dedicated effort and persistent advocacy, cricket in Colombia has achieved a monumental milestone: official recognition by the Ministry of Sports! This groundbreaking decision, formalized by Resolution No. 1 2024EE0037469, paves the way for the establishment of the Colombian Cricket Federation and marks a pivotal moment for the sport’s growth in the country.
For years, passionate cricket enthusiasts across Colombia, including organizations like Cricket Colombia and clubs such as the Barranquilla Cricket Club, have tirelessly worked to gain official recognition. This recognition is particularly timely given cricket’s return to the Olympic Games in Los Angeles 2028 and its proposed inclusion in the Pan American Games in Lima 2027, highlighting the sport’s rising global prominence.
The journey to this recognition has been a long one. Despite cricket being played in Colombia since 1897, and a continuous push for official status since as early as 2016, the sport had not previously garnered sufficient national or regional interest to fully align with the Ministry’s existing frameworks for departmental leagues.
Navigating the Path Forward: Challenges and Opportunities
The Ministry’s resolution outlines the formation of the Colombian Cricket Federation through a structure of three (3) departmental sports leagues, each comprising three (3) sports clubs. While this is a significant step, Cricket Colombia has engaged in discussions with the Ministry to address the practicalities of this requirement.
“Currently, cricket in Colombia doesn’t operate through departmental leagues in the traditional sense,” explains a representative from Cricket Colombia. “Instead, we have active, though often informally constituted, cricket clubs representing major cities like Bogota, Cali, Barranquilla, Santa Marta, and Medellin. These clubs regularly participate in national tournaments organized in a single city several times a year.”
Examples of this vibrant inter-city competition include a tournament in Barranquilla in March 2024, featuring two Bogota teams, and matches in Cali in September 2024 between the local selection and a Bogota team. A match between Santa Marta and Barranquilla was also scheduled for February 2025.
Cricket Colombia has respectfully requested the Ministry to consider a preliminary or temporary federation structure. This would allow for the immediate administration and regulation of the sport while the process of formalizing clubs and establishing departmental leagues continues. This rapid action is crucial, especially with the International Cricket Council (ICC) expressing keen interest in considering Colombia’s formal application for associate membership by March 2025, with a council meeting scheduled for September 2025.
The ICC Connection and International Aspirations
Colombia fulfilling the ICC’s requirements, which currently only lack a formal national federation, would unlock vital international funding for development and provide significant global visibility. The ICC, recognized by the International Olympic Committee (ASOIF/ARISF), is the global governing body for cricket, a sport with 17 member countries in Latin America alone, including Panama, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Brazil, and Guyana. Cricket also holds recognition from Paralympic authorities like VIRTUS and the International Sports Federation for Persons with Intellectual Disability (CISS).
Colombia already boasts a strong national men’s cricket team, having secured a bronze medal in the 2023 South American Cricket Championships (SACCs). This year also marks the highly anticipated first match of the national women’s team. Ensuring the national team’s continued participation in ICC-organized tournaments, and eventually in Pan American Games and Olympic qualifiers, is a top priority.
This official recognition from the Ministry of Sports is not just a bureaucratic formality; it’s a testament to the dedication of the cricket community in Colombia. It opens the door for a new era of growth, development, and international participation for the sport, bringing Colombia closer to the global cricketing stage.