IPL teams interested in investing in The Hundred, hold talks with the ECB

As the English and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) looks to secure private investment for the Hundred, it has approached the owners of Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises.

The Hundred was launched in 2021 with eight teams participating in both men's and women's events. The tournament introduced a new format as each innings consists of 100 balls. As the fourth edition of the Hundred is all set to get underway this month, the ECB has continued working on its plan to secure private investment in the competition.

The ECB wants private investment to not only get a financial boost but also to ensure that the tournament has a firm position in the global calendar. According to a report in the Times of India, the ECB also wants to make sure that it remains in control of the tournament. As a result, it wants to offer a 49 percent stake in each team to private investors, while the host teams would retain the remaining 51 percent shareholding.

"Control comes at different levels, it comes at team level and it comes at competition level -- that's not something we are ceding control of," ECB chief executive Richard Gould said, as quoted by TOI.

"Different investor groups have different needs, for some it is about control of what happens on the field, for others it's the commercial element.

"You're right about the strength of the Indian market -- it represents probably 90 percent of the revenues coming into the ICC (International Cricket Council) and we have seen the proliferation of IPL teams moving outside of their home market into other national markets. I think that's to be welcomed," he added.

The IPL has been the gold standard for cricket boards around the world. IPL's immense success both in terms of popularity and money is unparalleled. No competition can be compared with the IPL at present. In recent years, the IPL franchise owners have also made their presence felt outside the country by buying teams in different T20 leagues.

Most of the IPL franchises have teams in the Caribbean Premier League, Major League Cricket, ILT20 and SA20. And the ECB has now made it clear that it would like to have its presence in the Hundred as well.

IPL franchise owners interested:

While any IPL franchise owner is yet to buy any stake in the Hundred, ECB's director of business operations, Vikram Banerjee has confirmed that the owners are interested in it. Banerjee said that he has met and spoken with IPL and Women's Premier League (WPL) owners multiple times and the meetings have been positive so far.

"I've now met and spoken to, a number of times, all the IPL owners and WPL owners that don't overlap and there is interest there, from what they've told me, which is fantastic and lends into a very exciting process. I would really hope we have a level of partnerships with some IPL teams, I think that would be brilliant. They have done a great job and know cricket very well," Banerjee said.