The Hundred is one of the most talked about cricket leagues across the world and now according to the latest report, Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders, Rajasthan Royals, Sunrisers Hyderabad, and Lucknow Super Giants are some of the IPL teams that have made bids to buy teams in The Hundred, a tournament run by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).
The GMR Group recently became the new owner of Hampshire, and Avram Glazer, who co-owns Manchester United Football Club, has also submitted bids before the ECB’s deadline for potential investors on October 18, as reported by ESPNCricinfo. The ECB is looking for bids for a 49 percent stake in each of the eight teams, while it will keep majority control.
The report reads, “Expressions of interest could be for all eight teams, which would be culled to four in the next step which will start in November when the investors get to meet the host counties of each Hundred franchise.”
“Following that, investors would need to prune their wishlist to four teams, as part of the second stage, which will then come down to two teams of which they would need to make their final choice.”
ECB chairman Richard Thompson has talked about the idea of a “hybrid” ownership model. This means that some teams would stay under ECB control, while others could be sold to private investors.
The report also says that although many IPL teams were initially interested not all of them submitted their bids.
The report further added, “Punjab Kings opted out, while there has been no confirmation on whether five-times IPL champions Chennai Super Kings and equity major CVC Capital Partners, which owns Gujarat Titans, have submitted bids.”
“Global sports investors INEOS, owned by Jim Ratcliffe, which owns a 27% stake in Manchester United and runs the football club’s operations wing, have also opted out of bidding.”
