Termination of contract between USAC and ACE leaves players in limbo: Corey Anderson

Dallas [US], September 6 (ANI): The sudden termination of the contract between USA Cricket (USAC) and American Cricket Enterprises (ACE) has left players uncertain about their professional futures. Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, USA all-rounder Anderson highlighted the significant impact on athletes' livelihoods, questioning how long the uncertainty might continue and what the future holds for Major and Minor League seasons.
"I guess the termination of this contract between USAC and ACE just leaves players in a limbo and in a scenario where they are now so uncertain of their futures. This is something that they're extremely affected by in the way that they earn a living. How long does this last for? What does future seasons of Major League or Minor League or anything like that - what does that start to look like from that regard," Anderson told ESPNcricinfo on a call from his home in Dallas.
ACE, which plays a central role in US cricket operations, is involved in a dispute with the USAC over alleged unpaid dues. The organisation, which owns the High Performance Centre in Dallas, holds exclusive licenses for facilities in Morrisville and Florida, and manages drop-in pitches at the Oakland Coliseum used during the 2025 Major League Cricket season. It was contracted in 2019 to provide at least USD 1.2 million annually for national team contracts and support staff. While the USAC claims ACE failed to consistently meet this obligation, ACE insists it has always paid more than the agreed amount.
Another concern for Anderson is its potential impact on key preparatory events ahead of the 2026 T20 World Cup, scheduled for February-March in India and Sri Lanka, with the USA among the 20 participating teams.
In coordination with the USAC, ACE had planned a high-performance camp in Morrisville for 35 of the top men's players, featuring trial matches including three 50-over games and three T20s against West Indies A.
The camp was designed to identify the best players for the T20 World Cup while also preparing the team for the World Cricket League 2 in October, which serves as the USA's qualification pathway for the 2027 ODI World Cup. In addition, ACE is set to host the USA Women's team at the High Performance Centre in Grand Prairie, alongside a five-match T20 series against the West Indies scheduled for October-November.
"Is that all still taking place or not? These camps have to take place for the players to get ready for those things. All of those things are very much in a big question mark at the moment, which again just creates more uncertainty around the players. And effectively anything that goes on regarding those contracts ends up ultimately just affecting the players," Anderson said.
"It's just throwing a question mark on what players don't know and their uncertainty around even that, which is again so unfortunate, because we're in a space now with USA [where cricket] is growing and it's growing very fast, and there's a lot of money getting put into it and a lot of investment. But again [as things now stand], for what? Because players are now disrupted, unsure of what they need to do, unsure of where they're going, and what their future looks like," he concluded. (ANI)