In a pivotal meeting held Saturday morning at The Hut in Little Jumby, newly appointed Minister of Sports and Creative Industries Dwayne George received an official introduction to senior leadership from SAMAA, the parent company that owns the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) franchise Antigua and Barbuda Falcons. The gathering was personally facilitated by Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne, highlighting the national government’s strong commitment to advancing the sports sector across the twin-island nation.
During the closed-door talks, attendees focused their conversations on two key priority areas: the long-term trajectory of the Caribbean Premier League, one of the region’s most high-profile professional Twenty20 cricket competitions, and the broader strategic development of sports at the national level. A central theme of these discussions was the growth of cricket, the region’s most beloved and culturally significant sport. The meeting marks George’s first major official engagement with key cricket stakeholders since taking office, setting the stage for future collaborative efforts between the national government and private cricket franchise owners to boost the sport’s profile and competitiveness both locally and across the Caribbean.