The England and Wales Cricket Board is pushing ahead with proposals to change the Hundred format to the Twenty20 format, but plans to retain the name of the competition. this observer It is understood there is a possibility of a return to the traditional six-ball round when the next TV rights cycle begins in 2029, but the Top 100 title and branding will remain.
The ECB announced plans to adopt a new shorter format in 2018, with each 100-ball innings divided into groups of five or 10 balls instead of one round, but as it prepares to sell stakes in eight franchises this autumn, It is expected to revert to T20. Any changes to playing conditions would require the support of ECB TV rights partner Sky Sports, which was skeptical when the idea was first mooted last year.
Sky, which has committed £375m to The Hundred over nine seasons until 2028, is reluctant to sanction a U-turn, although retaining the name may be enough to win its support in a compromise deal.
Second rights partner BBC Sport is also a big fan of the 100-goal format as the shorter matches fit into its busy evening TV schedule, but its rights fee is only around £1m so it has less impact. The existing eight City-based Hundred teams will remain, with the ECB looking to add two more teams in the North East and South West ahead of the 2029 season.
“We have no plans to abandon the Committee of 100,” a source involved in the discussions said. “Our plan is to expand the competition and build on its success, regardless of format.
“A hundred is a well-known cricket term so retaining the name of the game will not be a problem. It is a very strong brand and attracts interest from around the world. But T20 is a global event and will become an Olympic event from 2028 competition event, so we had to explore that option.
The ECB’s announcement of the creation of the new format in 2018 caused controversy and upset many cricket supporters, with the Hundred finally being launched in 2021 after a 12-month delay due to the coronavirus pandemic. While the tournament was successful in attracting new viewers and advertisers to the sport, particularly the women’s hundred, it failed to catch on elsewhere in the world. Hopes that the hundred would take on an Olympic format proved wishful thinking when cricket entered the Olympics in Los Angeles four years later, and the ECB has been unable to attract Indian players or broadcasters to the tournament.
The ECB first proposed reviving the T20 in discussions with counties last year, an idea that was later solidified as part of its plan to attract external investment. While the ECB owns the eight teams centrally, it plans to hand over 51% of each team to its home county at the end of this season’s competition, which began with the 2017 South London Oval Invincibles and A doubleheader begins between the Birmingham Phoenix.
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The ECB hopes to sell the remaining 49% to outside investors in an auction process starting in September, and welcomes host countries to sell as much or as little as they wish. With the majority of potential investors expected to be from the United States and India, the ECB is understood to have concluded that it would make more sense to sell a competing T20 product, albeit retaining the Hundred brand.
The ECB hopes to raise up to 500 million pounds by selling half of it, but there are concerns about the sale process, according to several private equity sources. observer I think this valuation is too optimistic. The only firm offer the ECB has received so far was from Bridgepoint Group, a £400m offer for 75% of the company, which was rebuffed.
The European Central Bank declined to comment.
