KKR, MI and SRH among franchises in line to buy stake in Hundred teams

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Several IPL franchises, including the likes of Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders, Rajasthan Royals, Sunrisers Hyderabad, and Lucknow Super Giants, have expressed interest in purchasing stakes in teams for the England and Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB) 100-ball competition The Hundred.

 

According to ESPNCricinfo, the GMR Group, which recently acquired Hampshire and Avram Glazer, co-owner of Manchester United, also submitted bids ahead of the October 18 deadline set by the ECB for potential investors to register their interest in buying 49 per cent stakes in each of the eight Hundred teams.  Check India vs New Zealand 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE SCORE and MATCH UPDATES HERE

 

The submitted bids are a one-time payment for a 49 per cent stake in the teams, which are currently owned by the ECB. Investors can initially express interest in all eight teams, but this will be narrowed down to four by November, when they will meet with the host counties of each franchise. Investors will then have to choose their final team from two options.

 

ECB aiming to finalise investors soon

 

The ECB aims to finalise the investors by early 2025 but is in no rush, as it wants to avoid ‘underselling’ what it considers a valuable product. ECB chairman Richard Thompson has even suggested the possibility of a hybrid model next year, where the ECB would own some teams while private investors would own others.

 

However, not all IPL teams rushed to bid. While most had shown interest earlier, Punjab Kings opted out of the process, and it remains unclear whether Chennai Super Kings or CVC, owners of Gujarat Titans, submitted bids.

 

Lalit Modi, the architect of the IPL, recently criticised the ECB’s financial forecasts for the Hundred beyond 2026, calling them ‘overly optimistic and disconnected from reality’. Despite this, the ECB dismissed the criticism, stating that over 100 potential investors from India and the USA had sought information about privatisation. Thompson added that the investor pool was larger than expected.