The ECB has assured us that it will avoid an “IPL takeover” of English Cricket after the deadline in the Hundred’s sales process arrives with significant American interest.
Investors were given until Monday to submit bids in the second round of the process, with each host country or club to choose their two preferred partners for a joint venture.
Eight of the ten IPL franchises have been involved in the talks with counties in the past two months. Meanwhile Avram Glazer, the co-owner of Manchester United, has submitted two second round bids.
Jonathan Goldstein, the knighthead capital, who own Birmingham City have also reported benn involved second rounds of talks with host counties.
“This isn’t going to end up being an IPL takeover,” Thompson said. “There’s a huge amount of American money involved – very sophisticated investors who understand franchise sport. We invented sport, they invented the franchise, and they’re looking long-term.
“They know we’ve got the best time zone in the world. And if you’re looking to maximise the media rights, you look at the fact that rugby and football have got such incredibly successful domestic products, and we haven’t, really. They can see how unvalued that is.
“A lot of those American investors have had huge success investing in the Premier League and feel that the way that English law is structured, the way there is this tribalism and passion for sport in this country, they’ve seen that success play out through football and think, ‘well, that can play out just as easily in cricket, if we invest well’.”
IPL franchises have heavily invested in the three major T20 leagues that have launched in the last two years.”
“Between them, they have stakes in four out of six Major League Cricket franchises, three of the six ILT20 franchise in the UAE and all six teams in South Africa’s SA20.
“If we make decisions that actually leave some value on the table, that will be for the good of the sport, and that’s an important principle…
“In other processes, you talk about maximising value; here, we’re talking about optimising value, and that’s a subtle change but it’s really important”
Sanjay Govil, a tech entrepreneur who owns Washington Freedom in MLC, is also understood to have submitted multiple bids for stakes in Hundred franchises.
Meanwhile Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenny, the hollywood atcors and co-owners of Welsh football club Wrexham AFC, are understood to have been in touch with ECB and financial advisors regarding their interest in Welsh Fire.
With ECB expects a minimum of 350 million euros from the sale of 49% stakes in the sale of each of the eight Hundred franchises will be split among the 18 counties and MCC, barring 10% for recreational cricket.
“The level of interest really does make us have initial confidence that we’re going to reach a very successful outcome,” said Tim Bridge, the leader of the sports business group at deloitte.
“If we make decisions that actually leave some value on the table, that will be for the good of the sport, and that’s an important principle… In other processes, you talk about maximising value; here, we’re talking about optimising value, and that’s a subtle change but it’s really important.”
Lancashire has spoken to potential partners from the US but retain their desire to work with an IPL franchise, are among the host clubs to have indicated a preference to keep hold of their 51% stake in their Hundred team.
