Short answer: for most cricket fans in the US, Willow is the one to buy. It holds the IPL, ICC tournaments and India's home series, and it costs $9.99 a month or $79.99 a year direct. ESPN's streaming tier, which was renamed from ESPN+ to ESPN Select, carries a narrower slice of cricket, historically West Indies and New Zealand home internationals. It only makes sense as a cricket add-on if you already pay for it for other sports.
| Willow (direct) | ESPN Select (formerly ESPN+) | |
|---|---|---|
| Price (Sept 2026) | $9.99/mo or $79.99/yr | $14/mo or $140/yr from Sept 17, 2026 |
| IPL | Yes | No |
| ICC World Cups and T20 World Cup | Yes | No |
| India home series | Yes | No |
| The Ashes / Big Bash | Listed at Willow's launch | Check per season |
| West Indies home series | Check per series | Covered under a CWI deal signed in 2021 |
| New Zealand home series | Check per series | Has carried under an NZC deal |
| Other sports | None | Lots: college, soccer, UFC events, NHL and more |
Rights and prices from Willow/TrillerTV and ESPN announcements and Sports Media Watch, checked September 2026. Cricket rights are sold series by series, so always check the specific tour.
At a glance
Which one, in one line each
| IPL or India fan | Willow, annual plan |
| World Cup only | Willow, monthly for the tournament |
| West Indies supporter | ESPN Select for home tours |
| Already have ESPN | Add Willow only if you want IPL/ICC |
| Want both | About $24 a month combined |
Why this is a rights question, not a quality one
People compare these two like they'd compare Netflix and Hulu. That's the wrong frame. Both stream in HD, both have apps on every major TV platform. What separates them is simply which matches each is allowed to show in the US.
Cricket rights are sold by each national board for its home matches, and by the ICC for global tournaments, one country at a time. So a US viewer can't get "all cricket" from one place. Willow has bought the biggest pieces: the IPL, ICC events and India's home internationals. ESPN has picked up a few boards' home series. Which service is "better" depends entirely on which teams you follow.
Our guide to sports streaming rights explains why this fragmentation happens across every sport.
Willow: what you get and how to buy it
Willow has been the dedicated cricket channel in the US for years. Since November 2025 it's also sold direct as Willow by Cricbuzz through TrillerTV, at $9.99 a month or $79.99 a year. The launch announcement promised more than 60 live matches a month, naming the IPL, the ICC T20 World Cup, India home series, the Ashes and the Big Bash League.
Apps are on iPhone, Android, Fire TV, Roku, Apple TV and the web. There's no free trial on the direct plan.
The annual plan is the obvious choice for anyone following India, because there's cricket every month of the year and the IPL alone runs about two months. At $79.99 you're paying roughly $6.67 a month. For a casual fan who only wants a World Cup, pay monthly for the tournament and cancel.
ESPN Select: cricket as a side dish
ESPN reorganised its streaming in 2025. The old ESPN+ is now ESPN Select, and the bigger ESPN Unlimited tier adds the linear ESPN channels. From September 17, 2026, Select costs $14 a month or $140 a year; Unlimited is $32 a month.
ESPN's cricket has come mainly from board-level deals. Cricket West Indies signed a five-year US deal with ESPN+ in 2021 covering all West Indies home internationals and some regional competitions, and New Zealand Cricket also licensed its home matches to ESPN+. Some of those agreements have reached or are nearing the end of their original terms, so check ESPN's schedule for the specific tour before subscribing for it.
If you already have ESPN for college football, soccer or the NHL, the cricket is a pleasant bonus. Paying $14 a month only for West Indies home tours is harder to justify, because those tours only run a few weeks a year.
The yearly maths
| Fan type | Sensible setup | Approx. yearly cost |
|---|---|---|
| Follows India year-round | Willow annual | $79.99 |
| IPL only (about 2 months) | Willow monthly, twice | about $20 |
| World Cup only | Willow monthly for the event | $10-20 |
| West Indies home tours only | ESPN Select monthly during tours | about $28-42 |
| Everything | Willow annual + ESPN Select annual | about $220 |
Based on September 2026 list prices. Annual plans are cheaper per month but only pay off if you'd otherwise be subscribed for eight months or more. More on that in our annual-plan maths.
Getting Willow through another service
Willow is also sold inside other services, which can be cheaper if you already pay for them. Published listings in 2026 include Sling TV's Desi and Dakshin packs, a Prime Video Channels add-on, and sports tiers on Fubo and DirecTV. We look at Sling's version in our Sling Desi review.
Two things to check. Some bundles include the linear Willow channel but not every stream available on the direct app, so a match on Willow's digital feed may not be on the channel. And a bundle is only a saving if you'd pay for the rest of it anyway.
What not to do
Search for cricket streams during the IPL and you'll hit "free live cricket" sites and cheap IPTV lists. They're unlicensed, they're full of malicious ads, and they tend to drop out in the last over. Willow at $10 is cheap enough that the risk isn't worth it. If you're unsure whether a service is legitimate, our scam checklist takes two minutes.
Also avoid a VPN to reach a foreign broadcaster's app, such as JioHotstar in India. Those apps are licensed for their own country, and using them from the US breaks their terms.
Quick answers
Is Willow or ESPN+ better for cricket? Willow for almost everyone: it has the IPL, ICC events and India's home series. ESPN's service (now ESPN Select) covers a smaller set of boards' home series.
How much is Willow in 2026? $9.99 a month or $79.99 a year direct in the US.
Is ESPN+ still called ESPN+? It's now ESPN Select, priced at $14 a month from September 17, 2026.
Does ESPN show the IPL? No. IPL rights in the US are held by Willow.
Where can I watch the T20 World Cup in the US? On Willow, which holds ICC tournament rights in the US.
Where can I watch West Indies home matches? ESPN's streaming service has carried them under a Cricket West Indies deal; check the schedule for the specific tour.
Does Willow have a free trial? Not on the direct plan. Some bundles that include Willow offer a platform trial.
Can I get Willow on Sling? Yes, as part of certain Desi and Dakshin packs.
Cricket rights are sold series by series and change often. Confirm the specific tour with the service before paying. Checked September 2026.