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The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is “starting to pursue” personal funding in The Hundred groups, says chief government Richard Gould.
The Hundred, a 100-ball match launched in 2021, is at the moment funded by the ECB, with capital filtered right down to the related counties.
Gould stated discussions had led to funding being sought at group stage fairly than within the match itself.
“We’re looking at how that might manifest itself,” Gould instructed BBC Sport.
“The Hundred is a good vehicle for private investment to come into the game.”
Non-public funding in cricket has grown with the homeowners of Indian Premier League groups – the world’s largest franchise league – investing in sides in South Africa, america and the United Arab Emirates.
The ECB has invested an additional £100,000 in salaries for the ladies’s recreation for 2024, however each the lads’s and ladies’s gamers earn considerably lower than in franchise tournaments in India, which has made it troublesome to draw the world’s greatest abroad gamers.
“Most of our counties are privately-owned members clubs. That has provided a great stable base for a number of decades but, sometimes, in order to be able to compete on a global scale we need to bring in private investment also,” stated Gould at a launch occasion earlier than the brand new English home season begins on Friday.
The Hundred was created by the ECB to draw a extra various viewers and to suit into shorter broadcast slots.
A report 580,000 followers attended matches in 2023, with 41% of tickets offered to households and 30% to ladies.
Nevertheless, the match has confronted criticism from conventional cricket followers, who’re sad with how a few of the 18 counties are represented within the match.
The eight Hundred sides see counties mixed, similar to Yorkshire and Durham at Northern Superchargers, however others face prolonged journeys with followers of Somerset and Gloucestershire having Cardiff-based Welsh Hearth as their nearest facet.
Requested if there was a hazard that funding at group stage could end in cash being tougher to filter down and groups feeling extra marginalised, Gould stated he didn’t suppose that was the case.
“The way that our sport is organised and governed, everything under one umbrella, does allow us to make sure that any money that is available is invested in the area that is most appropriate and where we’ll get the most return,” stated Gould.
The ECB are dedicated to the match till 2028 in a broadcast take care of Sky Sports activities, and Gould feels funding will take the match to new ranges over the subsequent 5 years.
“The excitement levels will significantly increase,” he stated.
“We’ll be able to make sure we retain and attract all the best players in the world and have a game that either broadcasters, supporters or new fans want to be involved with.
“I am very excited by what that might convey for the entire ecosystem of cricket, whether or not that’s franchise led groups or county golf equipment.”
The 2024 version of The Hundred begins on 23 July, with chosen video games on BBC TV.
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