The auction for teams in The Hundred has been underway this week, with all-but three teams having already been sold. Here's who's bought each team.
The ECB are hoping to raise half a billion pounds by selling shares in eight teams from their domestic franchise competition, The Hundred. Money raised from selling the shares will be distributed across all 18 of the counties and the funds will boost investment into the grassroots of the game.
Investors have been offered a minimum 49% share of the franchises, with the affiliated counties retaining a 51% share which they can choose to keep or sell. January 30 saw multiple investors submit bids for stakes in the franchises as the auction process began.
Parties from India and the United States have been involved in the bidding for the franchises, with buyers deriving from IPL teams, US sport investors and global tech companies. In addition to raising money for the counties and grassroots cricket, a report from 2023 concluded the competition had made a loss of £9 million in its first two years, prompting the incentive to find new investors.
In 2022, the ECB received a bid of £400 million from Bridgepoint Group for a majority stake of The Hundred, but this was rejected and the governing body will continue to retain majority ownership of the tournament following the sale of franchises.
The 100-ball format debuted in 2021 and features eight teams for both the men and women competition, and tends to take place in between July and August. Since its inception, The Hundred has tried to attract newcomers to cricket with the reduced format aiming to simplify the game for a wider audience.
Which Hundred teams have been sold so far?
Currently (February 5), six sides have been auction off to investors: London Spirit, Oval Invincible, Welsh Fire, Manchester Originals and Northern Superchargers.
Who has bought which Hundred team?
London Spirit: Consortium including Google, Microsoft, and Adobe - 49 percent, £145 million
Oval Invincibles: Ambani Family - 49 percent, £60 million
Birmingham Phoenix: Knighthead Capital - 49 percent, £40 million
Manchester Originals: RPSG Group - 70 percent, £81 million
Welsh Fire: Sanjay Govil (Washington Freedom) - 49 percent, £40 million
Northern Superchargers: Sunrisers Hyderabad - 100 percent, £100 million
The future of The Hundred?
Once the bidding process is complete, one objective is to offer players higher salaries in order to compete with more established leagues around the world.
Due to the eight week exclusivity period, there will not be grand changes for the 2025 competition as deals will be finalised during spring time, but it is expected the tournament in 2026 will see greater change.
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