French hamlet hosts cricket over disputed 1478 claim

A small northern French village has hosted an international cricket tournament built around a disputed claim that it was the site of the earliest recorded cricket match.

Players from France and Belgium took part in the 11th edition of the Liettres Challenge 1478 in Liettres, a hamlet of just over 300 people.

Organisers say a letter written to King Louis XI in 1478 mentions a dispute at Liettres castle involving a man who was playing "criquet" with others. They say that reference predates by about a century the first known mention of cricket in English sources, in 1589 court papers.

The tournament was launched in 2015 by Lille Cricket Club after the village asked the club to help celebrate its place in cricket history. It has since become part of a medieval fair with other entertainment around the matches.

The historical claim is disputed. Neil Robinson, head of heritage and collections at Marylebone Cricket Club, cited a 1973 analysis that concluded the word in the 1478 letter was "etiquet", referring to a stake used in a game that was probably not cricket.

Former Lille Cricket Club president Philippe Dethoor said organisers had never claimed cricket was invented in France, only that the letter appeared to be the first written trace referring to a cricket match.