IPL Franchises and Global Tech Leaders Shortlisted for The Hundred At least four IPL franchises, along with a consortium of global tech leaders, have been shortlisted for the final bidding round to acquire stakes in The Hundred, the England and Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB) flagship 100-ball cricket tournament.
The shortlisted IPL franchises include Mumbai Indians, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Lucknow Super Giants, and Delhi Capitals co-owners GMR Group, who recently secured majority ownership of Hampshire. According to ESPNcricinfo, the ECB finalized the shortlist on December 23, 2024, after consultations with host counties and initial non-binding bids.
The transition to private ownership will begin in 2026.
The two London-based teams, Oval Invincibles (hosted by Surrey) and London Spirit (hosted by MCC), have garnered the most interest. The five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians and a consortium of global tech leaders are vying for control of the Invincibles. The tech consortium includes Sundar Pichai (Google CEO), Satya Nadella (Microsoft CEO), Shantanu Narayen (Adobe CEO), Egon Durban (Silver Lake CEO), and Nikesh Arora (Palo Alto Networks CEO).
This group is also bidding for the London Spirit, which plays its home games at Lord’s. RPSG Group, owned by Sanjeev Goenka, who heads the Lucknow Super Giants, is another strong contender for London Spirit.
Manchester Originals, based at Old Trafford, has emerged as a highly desirable franchise, attracting interest from Mumbai Indians, RPSG Group, and others.
The Sunrisers Hyderabad franchise, part of the Sun Group, has been shortlisted for three teams: Trent Rockets (Nottingham), Northern Superchargers (Leeds), and Welsh Fire (Cardiff). Meanwhile, CVC Capital Partners, owners of Gujarat Titans in the IPL, have been linked to Birmingham Phoenix.
The ECB is selling a 49% stake in each of the eight teams, which will initially be managed as joint ventures with host counties or, in the case of London Spirit, the MCC. ECB Chairman Richard Thompson previously stated that the privatization process would comfortably exceed their target of £350 million. Despite the interest, some investors have raised concerns about the projected financial returns outlined in the ECB’s prospectus. Lalit Modi, the founding chairman of the IPL, criticized the financial projections last September, calling them “dangerously overambitious and unsustainable.”
Pakistani players have been a staple of The Hundred since its inception. While the ECB has assured that ownership by IPL franchises will not interfere in the selection process of these players, history suggests otherwise. No Pakistani player appears for a franchise owned by an IPL consortium across the world. SA20, Major League Cricket (MLC), and ILT20 are a few examples where players from Pakistan ply their trade but only for teams not backed by IPL ownership. If the same occurs in The Hundred, it could further hamper their participation.
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