Cricket stadium proposed for Santa Clara County Fairgrounds

A cricket stadium may be coming to San Jose.

American Cricket Enterprises has entered an exclusive agreement with Santa Clara County to design, negotiate and seek approval for a state-of-the-art cricket stadium on a 14-acre site within the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, CricBuzz reported.

The deal is effective for a year, allowing both sides to iron out details. Plans call for a stadium with capacity for 6,000-8,000 people, with the potential to increase it to 15,000 with temporary seating.

Estimated to cost $50 million, the stadium will be developed in stages. ACE plans to begin construction by early January 2023, with the goal of completing the first phase of the project before the ITC T20 World Cup in May 2024. Raleigh, Fort Lauderdale and Los Angeles will join San Jose and Dallas as host cities for the U.S. leg.

The proposed stadium, which will be home to Major League Cricket’s franchise in the Bay Area, would also bolster cricketing infrastructure in the U.S. Plans to redevelop a Dallas baseball stadium into a cricket location were also announced last year.

ACE has pledged to develop and maintain at least six ICC-grade stadiums with overall capacity between 6,000-12,000. The number of turf wicket grounds across the nation has grown to more than 20 — four of those in the Bay Area.

The Bay Area is home to more than 100 senior men’s leather ball teams and about 40 youth teams. There are also more than 300 tape ball teams in the area. Three Minor League Cricket teams are also in the region: the Silicon Valley Strikers, the Golden State Grizzlies and the East Bay Blazers.

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