The ICC’s ambition to launch an official cricket mobile game is running into resistance from the World Cricketers Association, with the two bodies now openly disagreeing on who controls player name, image and likeness (NIL) rights.
What’s happened so far
• ICC executives floated the game to member boards in April, positioning it as a fresh revenue stream ahead of an expected dip in broadcast income from 2028-31.
• At July’s AGM in Singapore, some boards signalled they would prefer to negotiate directly with their own players on image rights.
• The WCA believes that stance ignores an existing global agreement it struck with the ICC and, crucially, threatens collective bargaining on behalf of more than 600 players.
Tom Moffat, the WCA chief executive, wrote to those players on 12 August: “The ICC/national governing bodies are taking steps to develop a global mobile game built on your name, image, likeness (NIL), without agreeing to terms with players collectively.” He added, “In short, it appears the ICC wants to use and sell your rights at the global level and doesn’t want you and your colleagues to have a say collectively at the global level on how your rights are used, and how you get paid for them.”
Why the ICC wants in
Mobile gaming is booming, particularly in India, where analysts valued the sector at roughly US$3 billion last year. Cricket-themed titles such as Real Cricket and World Cricket Championship attract millions of downloads and steady micro-transaction income. An official ICC game, with authentic logos and global events, would in theory offer a significant commercial upside and provide sponsors with fresh digital inventory.
The players’ standpoint
The WCA already licenses more than 250 cricketers to three developers, among them Nautilus Mobile’s Real Cricket series. Those arrangements are beginning to generate annual royalties, money the association argues would be diluted if the ICC asserts a blanket right to player images.
Moffat told players the ICC’s approach “points to a general lack of respect for players, your commercial rights, and your right to choose who represents you.” In the same note, he warned of “a desire (including from some national governing bodies) to ‘own’ you, and your NIL, in all contexts – even for off-field opportunities that exist outside of your playing contracts”.
Wider context
• Neither India nor Pakistan has a formal players’ association aligned with the WCA, leaving some of the game’s biggest names outside the existing collective bargaining framework.
• Several unlicensed Indian games already use international cricketers’ images, and the WCA says no revenue from those titles currently reaches players.
• A handful of boards, privately, feel they should be free to strike their own deals, arguing they invest in local talent pathways and bear injury-insurance costs.
Room for compromise?
Industry lawyers suggest a shared-licensing model, splitting global and local rights, could satisfy both sides. Yet that would require the ICC to acknowledge the WCA’s seat at the table – something that has proved sticky in past negotiations over fantasy-sports partnerships.
For now, the WCA has told its members to withhold permission for any ICC-led game until terms are agreed. The ICC, publicly at least, has kept its counsel, aware that any legal row could delay development and damage relationships barely a year out from the 2026 Champions Trophy.
What happens next
Developers are said to be waiting for clarity before committing serious budgets to an official build. If neither party blinks, the ICC may have to decide whether to proceed with purely tournament branding, leaving out real players, or pause the project altogether. And while that plays out, unofficial titles will keep hoovering up downloads.
One senior administrator, speaking off the record, summed up the dilemma: “Everyone wants the game to grow on new platforms, but the question is who cashes the cheque.” On present evidence, that answer is still several board meetings – and probably a few tense Zoom calls – away.
