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Because of the high demand for franchise cricket, a lot of leagues like the IPL, CPL, The Hundred, Big Bash, etc are getting bigger and bigger. Now, the ECB (England Cricket Board), who owns the 100% stakes of ‘The Hundred’ tournament is open to selling stakes to the IPL franchises and looking for an investment. With IPL being the biggest of all the leagues in terms of revenue, it would be a good thing for ECB if IPL franchises invest in The Hundred tournament. Today, we will talk about it in detail and give you updates about the talks between ECB and IPL franchise owners regarding the investment. So let’s dive into it quickly.
The emergence of franchise cricket in the last decade or so has been massive. We have seen a lot of money being involved in franchise cricket for the stakeholders, players, broadcasters, etc. The fans also enjoyed the shorter version of the game and that is why more sponsors were attracted to investment in these leagues.
ECB is open for an IPL franchise investment in The Hundred
According to the report by AFP, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has undertaken discussions with the IPL owners to determine a course for investment in The Hundred. The newest league has 100 deliveries per inning in the league.
With the lack of a franchise league in the country apart from The Hundred, the ECB has held preliminary talks with IPL franchise owners over the infusion of money in the tournament. The ECB governs and administrates the eight-franchise tournament right now.
Why ECB are looking for an investment from an IPL franchise?
First of all, the IPL is the biggest cricketing league all around the world. They attract more sponsors, which leads to more money and revenue. The IPL franchise owners has also invested in different leagues like SA20 in South Africa, the Major Cricket League (MLC) in the USA, the Women’s Premier League in India, etc. All 6 teams are owned by IPL franchise owners. If they invest in The Hundred, it will help the ECB to increase funding for England’s domestic circuit. It will also help in increasing the league’s relevance in the global calendar of the sport.
ECB don’t want to lose control of the stakes fully
The ECB intends to give private investors 49% of a franchise’s shares while keeping full control (51%) in its own hands. However, under certain circumstances, the ECB may award 100% ownership, taking into account the private owner’s operational and financial prowess.
At the moment, the ECB has the full 100% stakes of all the franchises and runs the tournament with limited budgets and finances. The ECB’s director of business operations, Vikram Banerjee told TOI that he has met the IPL franchise and WPL franchise owners quite a few times. He said there is an interest shown by the owners and hoping for a partnership with some IPL teams.
“I’ve now met and spoken to, a number of times, all the IPL owners and WPL (Women’s Premier League) owners that don’t overlap and there is interest there, from what they’ve told me, which is fantastic and lends into a very exciting process. I would hope we have a level of partnerships with some IPL teams, I think that would be brilliant. They have done a great job and know cricket very well.” – Vikram Banerjee said.
ECB’s chief executive, Richard Gould has his say on this
The chief executive of the ECB, Richard Gould, noted that groups have the option to sell a portion of their shares and that the action will not result in the governing body losing control over competition.
“Control comes at different levels, it comes at team level and it comes at competition level — that’s not something we are ceding control of. Different investor groups have different needs, for some, it is about control of what happens on the field, for others it’s the commercial element,” said Gould as quoted by TOI.
Why only IPL franchise owners?
The interested parties from Australia, South Africa, the USA, etc have contacted ECB for the stakes. The Indian market has contributed almost 90% of the revenue that the ICC (International Cricket Council) makes in a year. Gould also understands this and looking for an opportunity to cater Indian market. Let’s see how things panned out going forward.
Conclusion
So this is the development regarding The Hundred and ECB looking for IPL franchise owners investing in the league. Franchise Cricket keeps grabbing the attention of the audience. It will only get bigger and bigger. Other than T20 cricket, we have seen tournaments like The Hundred, T10 (where 10 overs per side game happens), and even 5 overs local competitions.
What do you think? Is it worth having so much franchise cricket around the world? Will it affect test cricket in the future? Or is it ok to have this much franchise cricket?
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FAQs:-
(1) When will the new edition of ‘The Hundred’ tournament commence?
The Hundred 2024 edition will start on July 23 at Kennington Oval, London. Oval Invincibles and Birmingham Phoenix will play the tournament opener.
(2) How many matches will happen in Thee Hundred 2024?
A total of 34 games will happen in The Hundred 2024, including the Eliminator and the Final.
(3) When will the Final of the tournament happen and where?
The final of the tournament will happen in Lord’s, London on August 18.
(4) Who won the last edition of The Hundred?
The last edition of the tournament happened in 2023. Oval Invincibles won the title by beating Manchester Originals in the final by 14 runs.
(5) Which batter has scored the most runs in the men’s tournament history?
Phil Salt, with 707 runs, is the highest run-scorer of the tournament so far.
