The International Cricket Council (ICC) governing body has struck a new, wide-ranging partnership with tech giant Google ahead of the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
Google’s Gemini artificial intelligence brand will serve as the official fan companion partner to the tournament, with the Google Pixel line as the official smartphone.
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Both brands will receive prominent branding presence throughout the tournament and will collaborate with the ICC on fan engagement activities.
The Gemini app will launch an “explore cricket” tab on its home page to promote the tournament, and similarly host games for cricket fans, while sharing AI-generated statistical insights around the fixtures.
Meanwhile, Google will leverage the camera technology in its Pixel cameras to capture and share content from across the games on digital and social media channels, as well as inside the stadium.
Speaking on the deal, ICC chief executive Sanjog Gupta said: “This partnership brings together two global organizations united by consumer focus, scale, purpose and innovation. Google’s leadership in connection, search and discovery, and AI, aligns strongly with the ICC’s ambition to serve fans better, delivering phygital experiences across touchpoints.
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By GlobalData“Together, we will use technology to deepen engagement, enhance experiences, and make cricket more accessible and meaningful for fans worldwide.”
Google previously partnered with the ICC for last year’s Women's Cricket World Cup, which was also centered around the tech giant’s fan engagement and AI capabilities.
In January, meanwhile, India’s BCCI body announced a partnership with Gemini for its elite IPL club competition, in a deal that illustrates India’s position as a crucial sponsorship battleground for tech industry players.
A 2024 survey published by Deloitte suggested that India ranked first among countries in the Asia-Pacific region for generative AI technology adoption, particularly among younger demographics such as students and young professionals, which will no doubt be markets targeted by the IPL and WPL as well.
The 2026 ICC T20 Men’s World Cup will be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka, and will take place from February 7 to March 8.
Ahead of the tournament, the ICC has also revealed the full range of global media rights partners that will cover the elite competition.
In the crucial Indian market, JioStar will remain the broadcaster, despite December reports that the media giants may be set to back out of the partnership two years ahead of schedule.
JioStar’s Star Sports offering will cover the tournament across the Indian subcontinent in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives.
In co-host Sri Lanka, Dialog TV has struck a deal to showcase the competition, while streaming service MyCo will show games in Pakistan.
In the UK, which will send both England and Scotland to the tournament, matches will once again be shown by pay-TV heavyweight Sky Sports, with the Sky Italia business showing games in Italy, home of the tournament’s only debutants.
Global OTT service Prime Video will showcase games in Australia, while Sky Sports NZ will cover fixtures in New Zealand.
In South Africa and Namibia, regional broadcaster SuperSport will cover all matches via its array of different platforms.
A variety of platforms have picked up rights across the UAE (and the wider Middle East region), most notably StarzPlay’s CricLife Max service, as well as broadcaster VOX.
Most recently, in the US (co-host of the 2024 edition) and Canada, Willow TV, the broadcast offering by the Cricbuzz platform, will showcase games live for free on YouTube, while in the nearby Caribbean, games will be shown on Disney+.
Other assorted rightsholders include Total Sport Management (Bangladesh), PNG Digicel (Pacific Islands), Hub Sports 4 (Singapore), Lemar TV (Afghanistan), Kantipur TV (Nepal), and the CricBuzz streaming channel (Malaysia, Hong Kong).
Games will also be shown in-flight and at sea via the Sport24 service.
