Sports team owners and billionaire businessmen are among the high-profile investors who have secured stakes in The Hundred ahead of the 2025 season.
The England and Wales Cricket Board announced last summer that it was opening a process to secure private investment ahead of the 2025 edition, which is live on Sky Sports in August.
The eight hosts of the teams were given a 51 per cent stake, which they could sell – in full or in part – or keep, while the remaining 49 per cent in each side was sold by the ECB, with the proceeds distributed between the 18 first-class counties and the MCC.
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Sky Sports Cricket Podcast’s Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton discuss English cricket’s ‘IPL moment’ as The Hundred franchises are sold in full or part
A three-round bidding process attracted interest from around the world, with the eight teams valued at a total of just over £975m from the stakes sold.
If all the deals are concluded, the stakes being sold will result in more than £520m being injected into the professional and recreational game, while the counties which do not host a Hundred team are set to get a bigger share from the sale of the ECB’s 49 per cent stake.
Here’s a team-by-team look at who has invested into The Hundred ahead of the new season…
Birmingham Phoenix
Birmingham City owners Knighthead Capital Management – for whom NFL legend Tom Brady acts as a minority investor – succeeded in a £40m deal for the Edgbaston-based Phoenix side.
Warwickshire CEO Stuart Cain said: “Throughout the process Knighthead demonstrated a strong financial commitment and deep understanding of what it takes to elevate high-performance sport.
“They have far-reaching global influence that will help us promote Birmingham Phoenix to cricket and sport fans around the world and a wealth of sports investment experience.
“We’d said at the start of this process that we wanted an investor committed to invest in the region and be with us for the long term, to make a real difference. I believe we’ve found that in Knighthead.”
London Spirit
An 11-strong consortium of tech billionaires has agreed to buy a 49 per cent stake in Spirit, who play at Lord’s.
Cricket Investor Holdings Limited, led by US cybersecurity company Palo Alto Networks chair and chief executive Nikesh Arora, are set to pay £145m, which would value Spirit at around £300m.
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Sky Sports Cricket Podcast’s Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain speak to Nikesh Arora, leader of the consortium that has invested in London Spirit
Sundar Pichai, the chief executive of Google, and Satya Nadella, the chief executive of Microsoft, are part of the consortium.
This bid is reported to have beaten off competition from Manchester United co-chair Avram Glazer’s Lancer Capital and a group affiliated to Chelsea chair Todd Boehly.
Manchester Originals
The RPSG Group, owners of Indian Premier League side Lucknow Super Giants, were the successful bidders during the sale of Originals, who play their home games at Emirates Old Trafford.
Reports suggest the winning bid values the Originals at over £100m, with the RPSG Group outlasting other interested parties after initially being interested in securing Spirit.
A statement from Lancashire said: “We have been very focused on securing a great partner – ideally from the IPL
– and RPSG has been our preferred bidder for some time.
“We are delighted by the outcome and look forward to working together to create an exciting future. Together, we have a shared ambition to create a very special cricket team for the people of Manchester and the wider North West region.”
Northern Superchargers
Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Sun TV Network Limited are another set of IPL owners to invest in The Hundred after buying Yorkshire’s entire stake in the Headingley-based Superchargers for around £100m.
Sunrisers Hyderabad are two-time IPL champions, in 2009 and 2016, while the Sun Group’s Sunrisers Eastern Cape franchise has won the first two editions of the SA20 in South Africa.
The huge financial windfall could allow Yorkshire to pay off their £15m debt to the Graves family in one go.
Oval Invincibles
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Take a look back at the winning moment from The Hundred last summer, where the Oval Invincibles defeated Southern Brave
Reliance Industries Limited, who own Mumbai Indians in the IPL, are said to have seen off competition from a consortium involving executives from Google, Microsoft and Adobe, as well private equity group CVC.
The price that the Ambani family – the richest family in India – agreed to pay for the ECB stake is unclear, although sources said it is understood to have valued 100 per cent of Invincibles at approximately £125m.
Southern Brave
James Vince featured for Southern Brave last season
Southern Brave are the second side to be fully owned by IPL-backed investment, with the GMR Group – as expected – winning the bid to secure the 49 per cent stake.
The Delhi Capitals co-owners were already majority shareholders in Hampshire, the first County Championship club to be owned by an overseas franchise.
It is understood the GMR Group have secured the remaining stake for just under £48m, valuing the team at around £98m.
Trent Rockets
Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly has bought a 49 per cent stake in Trent Rockets, who play their home games at Trent Bridge
After unsuccessfully bidding for Spirit, Chelsea co-owner Boehly purchased a 49 per cent stake in Rockets as his company Cain International & Ares Management, which he set up with British businessman Jonathan Goldstein, forked out close to £40m for the Midlands outfit.
The acquisition of Rockets adds to the American’s sporting portfolio with Boehly also co-owner of French football club Strasbourg, Major League Baseball’s Los Angeles Dodgers and the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks.
Welsh Fire
The owners of Major League Cricket franchise Washington Freedom, backed by Indian-American IT entrepreneur Sanjay Govil, agreed to buy a 49 per cent holding in Cardiff-based Fire for around £65m.
Freedom’s owners beat off interest from, among others, Capri International, which owns UP Warriorz in the Women’s Premier League.
Wrexham Football Club’s owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenny were among those interested in a stake but did not enter the formal bidding process.
ECB: Investment can grow cricket ‘for generations to come’
ECB chair Richard Thompson said: “The overwhelming interest we’ve received from prospective partners across industries and geographies throughout this process reflects the immense untapped potential English cricket and the competition hold as we take The Hundred to the next level.
“The partners we have entered into exclusivity with bring a wealth of expertise in cultivating elite sports teams and businesses. Their knowledge can help us in expanding fan engagement locally and globally, creating phenomenal matchday experiences, attracting even more of the game’s best players into The Hundred and more.
“Our aim now is to ensure the necessary steps are taken to finalise this process, in order to unlock the transformative impact that these new partners will bring to the competition.
“This will also secure the funding that will go directly to the professional counties and recreational game, underpinning the fabric of our county game and helping futureproof cricket’s growth in England and Wales for generations to come.”
Who will win The Hundred? Watch every match in 2025 live this August on Sky Sports. Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW.
