Liam Plunkett's American dream: How the World Cup winner is spreading cricket across the USA

Through his Liam Plunkett Cricket venture, the England international is working to improve the sport's structure across North America

By his own admission, it's a "corny and cheesy" thing to say – but for Liam Plunkett, America really is the land of opportunity.

The World Cup winner made the permanent move to the USA with his American wife after helping to launch Major League Cricket in 2023.

Now, having grasped both the appetite for cricket and a gap in the market in the US, he's aiming to increase both participation and quality of the sport there through his Liam Plunkett Cricket venture.

LPC provides coaching and other cricket-related services, with the aim of giving the sport a more professional structure across North America.

"When I moved over, a lot of people were reaching out and saying 'do you mind helping out with coaching?'", says Plunkett, speaking from the academy he runs in the Philadelphia area.

"In terms of the coaching structure, it felt like it wasn't quite there. Then a year ago, I got approached to provide coaching classes similar to what you might get from an ECB course. We've grown LPC from that.

"We've got a really nice facility where I am, and there are a good amount of kids there. We're now linked with an academy in Chicago too.

"I wanted a professional structure and that wasn't there before."

Involved in that more professional structure are England women's player Lauren Winfield-Hill and her wife Courtney, formerly a professional player in Australia, to help LPC cope with the growing demand for women's and girls' coaching.

^{Liam Plunkett has found coaching players of all abilities rewarding}

There are also plans to roll out courses in elementary schools, universities and at cricket clubs, such as Philadelphia's historic Germantown CC.

"Lauren is a great cricketer and Courtney is a great coach, so I think they're going to build something really special there," says Plunkett.

"We've got so much going on that I want to be the place you go to know about cricket in America.

"We want to provide that platform for people to learn cricket, making it educational but also fun. I enjoy throwing balls for five-year-olds just as much as I do giving technical tips to aspiring pros.

"When I go to kids' baseball coaching classes, you've got six and seven-year-olds doing speed sessions, but as long as they're having fun then it's great."

Support for Plunkett's venture has come from fellow 2019 World Cup winners including Moeen Ali and Joe Root, while LPC is also working with the Yorkshire Cricket Board (Plunkett maintains a home in Harrogate) to deliver a version of its Rookie Coaches course.

However, he remains focused on its expanding cricket's reach over the Atlantic – and not just to junior and senior players from traditional cricket-playing nations.

"It's a really corny and cheesy thing to say but this is a land of opportunity," adds Plunkett.

"If you put time and effort into whatever you're doing, it feels like it's applauded.

"People want you to succeed and people want you to do well in business.

"I want everyone to be involved. We have people from South Asian communities and English kids whose parents have moved over here, but there's going to be more interest in cricket as Major League Cricket grows.

"It's not easy to get kids out of baseball if their parents know nothing about cricket, but we're trying to spread the message as best we can."

To find out more about Liam Plunkett Cricket, click here.