Latest news with #SanjayGovil
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
‘It would be better as a T20': Welsh Fire's Sanjay Govil questions Hundred format
Before stakes in the Hundred franchises were sold in February it was widely assumed that Welsh Fire would be the cheapest off the peg. Based in Cardiff, where bums on seats can be a challenge, and lacking Welsh representation on the field, they have been the butt of a few jokes during the tournament's short history. But for Sanjay Govil, an IT entrepreneur and the owner of Washington Freedom in Major League Cricket (MLC), the appeal of 'one team, one country' was too great, likewise the 'chemistry' during talks with the top brass at Glamorgan. Though he was on a plane when the auction took place, he secured a 49% stake in Welsh Fire, later raised to 50%, that valued the team at £84.6m, more than Trent Rockets or Birmingham Phoenix. Advertisement Related: County cricket: Lancashire, Sussex and Somerset lead way in T20 Blast As Govil outlines his vision for Welsh Fire the most eyebrow-raising remark arguably comes when discussing the future of the Hundred at large and whether, like a number of observers, he believes the 100-ball format is simply one too many for an overstuffed sport. 'I absolutely see it the same way,' he says. 'The Hundred should at some point follow the T20 format because you already have one-day cricket, you have T20, you have Test cricket, right? And just having one more variation, which is off from any other strategy … from a longer-term perspective it would just be better as a T20. But that is something for the future. And [the counties] already have a T20 tournament.' Govil is reluctant to call himself an owner just yet, with the new model not kicking in until 2026 and investors still to sign the contracts with the England and Wales Cricket Board. The delay, he says, comes down to the number of lawyers involved, even if the sticking points reportedly centre on broadcast money, sponsorship and representation on the Hundred's governing body. Advertisement This impasse is expected to be resolved soon, after which Govil, a tech magnate who made his fortune founding Infinite Computer Solutions in the US will formally become a major player in English cricket. Born in Canada and raised in India, Govil says that alongside a love of Test cricket – plus India's era-defining World Cup win in 1983 – he grew up following county cricket scores in the newspapers. 'Being associated with the Hundred is a dream come true,' he says. This investment in Welsh Fire is a passion project, it appears, but Govil stresses that passion has always underpinned his work. As for the lack of Welsh players in the two squads – and the fact that the last England men's player produced by Glamorgan was Simon Jones more than 20 years ago – he says he has 'not given it much thought' due to his focus on getting the deal done. More broadly, he prefers to leave the cricket to the coaching staff and take a 'back seat'. That said, as the owner of Washington Freedom, a team coached by Ricky Ponting and featuring Steve Smith, Travis Head and Glenn Maxwell during last year's title win, the vision for the men's team is clear. In time Govil wants to marry up the two 'WF' franchises – the initials are a happy coincidence, he says – and secure players to feature in tournaments that currently run back-to-back. 'Smith is playing for Welsh Fire this summer, so that is the first player from Washington Freedom,' says Govil. 'We have tremendous talent in our [Washington] team and they have expressed great interest in playing in the Hundred. With MLC and the Hundred so close to each other, we have an opportunity to sign up players for multi-league. It is important to build local talent also but these things don't change overnight.' Advertisement The notion of tournament-hopping players flags the broader direction of travel for the sport and as a self-professed Test cricket lover one would assume Govil to have concerns. There are only 12 months in a year and the squeeze created by the franchise world's tractor beam means something will have to give. 'Cricket might go the way of football in Europe, where they play for the clubs but then play for the country when required,' he says. 'There is still going to be Test cricket, but maybe – again, I'm just thinking through it – it is played just three months a year in two blocks of six weeks. Then X amount of time for the IPL, MLC, the Hundred etc. And not all players overlap. But I see the calendars evolving.' As well as the broader plan, what comes across is just how collegiate the Hundred team owners are despite four coming from established Indian Premier League teams and four relative newcomers. They are rivals, clearly, but Govil says they are also 'a family' who happily offered him guidance when first setting up his MLC team. It makes sense. A rising tide lifts all boats. It will be interesting to discover whether Govil's view on the 100-ball format is shared by others; whether they have simply bought stakes in English cricket and plan to shape what this means at a later date. Another question is whether TV rights for the Hundred will be sold separately in future. The current deal has the English summer bundled up as one product and means Test cricket – still the No 1 format in the UK – could even be subsidising the thing that threatens to strangle it. 'You will only know if they are split up, right?' says Govil. 'I am a very firm believer in the market determining your price. And so I believe the TV contract should be separate. Or we're guessing. Maybe it is correct that Test cricket is subsidising the Hundred. But maybe it is the other way around. The TV money [from Sky] went up when the Hundred came in, no? But I like objectivity. Everything should be simple.' A laudable sentiment – although when it comes to the Hundred, a tournament that has split opinions and looks likely to change, simplicity has been a rarity.
The Guardian
4 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
‘It would be better as a T20': Welsh Fire's Sanjay Govil questions Hundred format
Before stakes in the Hundred franchises were sold in February it was widely assumed that Welsh Fire would be the cheapest off the peg. Based in Cardiff, where bums on seats can be a challenge, and lacking Welsh representation on the field, they have been the butt of a few jokes during the tournament's short history. But for Sanjay Govil, an IT entrepreneur and the owner of Washington Freedom in Major League Cricket (MLC), the appeal of 'one team, one country' was too great, likewise the 'chemistry' during talks with the top brass at Glamorgan. Though he was on a plane when the auction took place, he secured a 49% stake in Welsh Fire, later raised to 50%, that valued the team at £84.6m, more than Trent Rockets or Birmingham Phoenix. As Govil outlines his vision for Welsh Fire the most eyebrow-raising remark arguably comes when discussing the future of the Hundred at large and whether, like a number of observers, he believes the 100-ball format is simply one too many for an overstuffed sport. 'I absolutely see it the same way,' he says. 'The Hundred should at some point follow the T20 format because you already have one-day cricket, you have T20, you have Test cricket, right? And just having one more variation, which is off from any other strategy … from a longer-term perspective it would just be better as a T20. But that is something for the future. And [the counties] already have a T20 tournament.' Govil is reluctant to call himself an owner just yet, with the new model not kicking in until 2026 and investors still to sign the contracts with the England and Wales Cricket Board. The delay, he says, comes down to the number of lawyers involved, even if the sticking points reportedly centre on broadcast money, sponsorship and representation on the Hundred's governing body. This impasse is expected to be resolved soon, after which Govil, a tech magnate who made his fortune founding Infinite Computer Solutions in the US will formally become a major player in English cricket. Born in Canada and raised in India, Govil says that alongside a love of Test cricket – plus India's era-defining World Cup win in 1983 – he grew up following county cricket scores in the newspapers. 'Being associated with the Hundred is a dream come true,' he says. This investment in Welsh Fire is a passion project, it appears, but Govil stresses that passion has always underpinned his work. As for the lack of Welsh players in the two squads – and the fact that the last England men's player produced by Glamorgan was Simon Jones more than 20 years ago – he says he has 'not given it much thought' due to his focus on getting the deal done. More broadly, he prefers to leave the cricket to the coaching staff and take a 'back seat'. That said, as the owner of Washington Freedom, a team coached by Ricky Ponting and featuring Steve Smith, Travis Head and Glenn Maxwell during last year's title win, the vision for the men's team is clear. In time Govil wants to marry up the two 'WF' franchises – the initials are a happy coincidence, he says – and secure players to feature in tournaments that currently run back-to-back. 'Smith is playing for Welsh Fire this summer, so that is the first player from Washington Freedom,' says Govil. 'We have tremendous talent in our [Washington] team and they have expressed great interest in playing in the Hundred. With MLC and the Hundred so close to each other, we have an opportunity to sign up players for multi-league. It is important to build local talent also but these things don't change overnight.' The notion of tournament-hopping players flags the broader direction of travel for the sport and as a self-professed Test cricket lover one would assume Govil to have concerns. There are only 12 months in a year and the squeeze created by the franchise world's tractor beam means something will have to give. 'Cricket might go the way of football in Europe, where they play for the clubs but then play for the country when required,' he says. 'There is still going to be Test cricket, but maybe – again, I'm just thinking through it – it is played just three months a year in two blocks of six weeks. Then X amount of time for the IPL, MLC, the Hundred etc. And not all players overlap. But I see the calendars evolving.' Sign up to The Spin Subscribe to our cricket newsletter for our writers' thoughts on the biggest stories and a review of the week's action after newsletter promotion As well as the broader plan, what comes across is just how collegiate the Hundred team owners are despite four coming from established Indian Premier League teams and four relative newcomers. They are rivals, clearly, but Govil says they are also 'a family' who happily offered him guidance when first setting up his MLC team. It makes sense. A rising tide lifts all boats. It will be interesting to discover whether Govil's view on the 100-ball format is shared by others; whether they have simply bought stakes in English cricket and plan to shape what this means at a later date. Another question is whether TV rights for the Hundred will be sold separately in future. The current deal has the English summer bundled up as one product and means Test cricket – still the No 1 format in the UK – could even be subsidising the thing that threatens to strangle it. 'You will only know if they are split up, right?' says Govil. 'I am a very firm believer in the market determining your price. And so I believe the TV contract should be separate. Or we're guessing. Maybe it is correct that Test cricket is subsidising the Hundred. But maybe it is the other way around. The TV money [from Sky] went up when the Hundred came in, no? But I like objectivity. Everything should be simple.' A laudable sentiment – although when it comes to the Hundred, a tournament that has split opinions and looks likely to change, simplicity has been a rarity.
Telegraph
30-04-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Hundred franchise deals worth £520m are still not signed
The eight contracts for the £520 million Hundred sell-off remain unsigned, with this week's extended second deadline to sign expected to be missed. Some of the deals are expected to drag on all summer, despite a new financial incentive from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) designed to persuade owners to put pen to paper. In February, the ECB held an auction to sell stakes in the eight teams, which drew bids valuing the franchises at £975 million, creating a windfall of £520 million for the game. After the auction, the investors entered a period of exclusivity with the host venues to thrash out final details of their new partnerships. But Telegraph Sport reported last month that the exclusivity period was being extended over a series of sticking points for the investors in the 'participation agreement'. That extension until the end of April will come and go without any of the eight deals being signed. A revised participation agreement is due to be sent out to all parties this week, which could finally see movement on some of the deals. Who is ready to sign? Most of the deals are ready to be signed, but the two London franchises are causing the hold ups. Surrey's partnership with the Ambanis, Asia's richest family and the owners of Mumbai Indians, is causing the most lag, but the deal between Marylebone Cricket Club (the owners of Lord's) and Cricket Investor Holdings, the American-led consortium of 'Tech Titans' is also some way from being signed. Insiders believe that negotiations over these two deals could rumble on to the end of the English season, but there are other investors seeking changes to the contract too. There is growing frustration among some parties about the delays. The ECB has offered an incentive for investors who sign promptly. Those who sign before this year's tournament will receive a slice of their team's profits. Those who wait until after this year's tournament to sign will not. There is thought to be a further incentive for some of the investors to sign soon: the plummeting value of the US dollar against the pound. Four of the investors are from the USA: the Tech Titans, Welsh Fire's Sanjay Govil, Birmingham Phoenix partners Knighthead Capital and Trent Rockets' deal with Cain International (which includes Chelsea co-chairman Todd Boehly) and Ares Management. Since they agreed the price, their dollars have reduced in value, making their investments more expensive. What is causing the hold ups? Earlier in April, Richard Gould, the ECB CEO, and Vikram Banerjee, who now runs the Hundred, flew to India to meet investors. Delegations from Surrey, Hampshire and Lancashire have also made trips to meet their Indian Premier League partners. These meetings seem to have solved some but not all the issues. A major sticking point was the 'bundling' of UK broadcast rights for the next four-year cycle (2029-32) – ie the ECB selling the Hundred rights in the same package as the rest of their offering, most notably international cricket. Understandably, investors wanted to be able to sell the Hundred rights separately themselves (especially as the Ambanis and Tech Titans have business in the media world). The ECB preferred the bundled option, because by then the Hundred will still be a relatively new competition that suits being housed alongside the rest of their offering – likely still on Sky (who played a key role in creating the tournament and are important allies of the ECB). In the end, the rights will remain bundled when they go to market (likely in about two years' time), a win for the ECB. Broadcasters will itemise their bids, so the Hundred owners know exactly what their competition is worth, and the Hundred will have a floor valuation of £51 million a year (the overall deal is currently worth around £220 million a year). The investors will control the selling of rights in other territories, offering further opportunity for a return on investment. From 2033, the UK rights will be unbundled, meaning Sky would have to bid for the Hundred separately from international cricket if it wanted to hold onto both. The ECB has made a number of concessions during the negotiating process, including allowing teams to take greater control of their own sponsorship deals. They have also ceded control of voting rights on the new 20-strong Hundred Board. They would hold just a third of voting rights over the future of the competition. Nevertheless, some investors – notably the infamously commercially hard-nosed Ambanis – have problems with the participation agreement as it stands, and are still making further commercial demands. What are the key players saying? Speaking at the start of April, Gould expected that the deals would be done 'in the next month or so, perhaps sooner', adding 'some parties are absolutely ready to go now, others have additional questions. It's the quality of the conversations and not timescale we're focused on'. Last week, Surrey CEO Steve Elworthy appeared on the Business of Sport podcast, speaking about his visit to Mumbai with chairman Oli Slipper (listen below). 'Most of the negotiations around the Hundred stuff has been happening via lawyers, so you get a bit of a feeling of how the relationship is through the lens of a legal conversation, which is not ideal,' he said. 'We spent every hour of every day with the [Ambani] team. We came away really enthused about the partnership. 'We have a contract to negotiate, they are putting significant money in, and we have a bit of work to do there. At the same time, once that contract is done, they are going to be fantastic partners.' Appearing on the Final Word cricket podcast last week, Gould also admitted that it could take a 'few months' yet. 'The process is still ongoing,' he said. 'We are not in contract, so we are not making any huge assumptions because that would weaken our position elsewhere. But subject to us being able to complete on those within the next few weeks or few months, which I think is very likely, it does put the game in a very different position. Hopefully £50 million into grass-roots cricket, £500 million going through the professional game, which will be spent on good things which will sustain the game for the next 20-25 years. 'There's a whole host of points that people want to address. Some of the investors are good to go now, others are asking questions. If you look at the amount of investment that has come into the game, and more importantly the quality of the investor, that is a game changer for us, and we are very happy to spend more time than we originally planned getting a base level of agreement. No one is trying to look at the value and reduce what they are paying. Those conversations have not taken place.' Could any of the eight deals collapse? In short, this seems highly unlikely. But the ECB and the host venues may find themselves ceding a little more ground yet. As a source close to the investors said: 'the owners hold all the cards'.
Arab News
13-02-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Sale of The Hundred hits the jackpot
It feels like the end of the beginning for The Hundred. Eye-watering sums were paid between Feb. 6 and 12 for shares in the eight 'franchises' that constitute the tournament. There is no denying that it has been a divisive and polarizing concept. However, in what has been described as the Indian Premier League moment for cricket in England and Wales, there is partial closure on this rancor because of the amount of money that has been raised. The next concern is how it will be spent by the beneficiaries. In first place are the seven County Cricket Clubs, plus the Marylebone Cricket Club, which hold the franchises, the so-called hosts. It has always been something of a misnomer to term them franchisees since the tournament has been owned by the England and Wales Cricket Board. The ECB footed the start-up costs, a significant part of which were payments of £1.3 million ($1.6 million) per year to the 18 counties to secure the necessary two-thirds majority. Eleven of them are non-hosting and were not in favor of The Hundred because it provided them no benefit. The funding, termed a dividend, overcame objections. In 2024, the counties supported the ECB in its wish to open up The Hundred to private investment. Eight new companies were to be created, with the ECB gifting each one 51 percent of its equity, which the holders can either keep, sell partially or wholly. The balance of 49 percent retained by the ECB would be offered to the market. This process is now complete. First to be sold was the Oval Invincibles at Surrey, where the Reliance Group paid £60 million for the ECB's 49 percent stake. Reliance is led by Mukesh Ambani, India's richest man, who counts the Mumbai Indians, MI Emirates, MI Cape Town and MI New York within his franchise portfolio. Surrey CCC will retain its 51 percent share. Similarly, Warwickshire CCC retained its 51 percent share in Birmingham Phoenix, with the ECB's 49 percent share bought by the American owners of Birmingham City Football Club, Knighthead Capital, for £40 million. This may not please supporters of Aston Villa, the rival soccer club in the city. Then, the ECB's 49 percent share in the Welsh Fire was bought by IT entrepreneur Sanjay Govil, founder and chairman of Infinite Computer Solutions, for £40 million, with Glamorgan CCC retaining its 51 percent share. These sums were eclipsed by the £145 million which was paid by a Silicon Valley consortium for 49 percent of the Lord's-based London Spirit. It is believed that this stake was the subject of intense bidding between interested parties, including Sanjiv Goenka's RPSG Group. The attraction of this prestige stake lies in the access that it provides to Lord's and its owners, the MCC. Nikesh Arora, CEO of the security firm, Palo Alto Networks, led the consortium, called Cricket Investor Networks Ltd. It is believed to comprise '11 high net-worth individuals,' who profess a shared love of cricket. Amongst them are Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft; Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google; Shantanu Narayen, CEO of Adobe; Egon Durban, CEO of Silver Lake Management; and Satyan Gajwani, vice-chairman of Times Internet. He is also co-founder of Major League Cricket in the US and co-owner of the Seattle Orcas team. Any disappointment experienced by Goenka in losing the battle for the stake in the London Spirit was put to one side, as it acquired a 70 percent stake in Lancashire CCC. The county became the first one to sell a part, 21 percent, of its share in the Manchester Originals. RPSG, owners of the IPL's Lucknow Super Giants, agreed to pay around £81 million for the 70 percent stake. Across the Pennines, Yorkshire CCC, Lancashire's historic and greatest rivals, has well-publicized financial issues. It now has the opportunity to deal with them. The ECB's 49 percent stake in the Leeds-based Northern Superchargers, plus Yorkshire's 51 percent stake, has all been sold to Kalanithi Maran's Sun Group, owners of Sunrisers Hyderabad and Sunrisers Eastern Cape for around £100 million. A little further south, it was Nottingham-based Trent Rockets' turn in the spotlight. This sale had originally been scheduled for Feb. 3 but was delayed as the ECB sought to keep investors, who had failed with earlier bids, involved in the process. This may have caused some nervousness in Nottingham CCC, as they watched potentially preferred bidders place their money elsewhere. Ultimately, Cain International, which had bid for the London Spirit, topped the live auction on Feb. 11, acquiring the ECB's 49 percent stake for around £40 million in competition with the owners of Kolkata Knight Riders and Indian investor Amit Jain, who was working with Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The Cain Group is led by Chelsea FC director Jonathan Goldstein and backed by Chelsea's co-owner Todd Boehly, who, in addition to Chelsea, has co-ownership of Strasbourg FC and the LA Dodgers baseball team. Nottingham Forest FC may feel uncomfortable seeing Chelsea parked on an adjacent lawn. The final sale of the ECB's equity focused on the Southern Brave team of Hampshire CCC. In late September 2024, the company that owns Hampshire CCC announced a takeover by the GMR Group, which co-owns the Delhi Capitals in the IPL, plus franchises in the UAE and South Africa. The £120 million deal was for the control of Hampshire CCC and its infrastructure. Plans to acquire the Brave would wait until the ECB's sale process was revealed. A key concern of the ECB was that its equity share should not be acquired by GMR at below-market value. Since that value would only emerge once bidding started, it made sense for the ECB to leave the Hampshire sale until last. On Feb. 12, it was reported that GMR had paid around £48 million for the ECB's stake, paving the way for GMR to acquire total control of the Southern Brave. The value of Hampshire's 51 percent share is unclear. There is more clarity around the funds raised by the sale of the ECB's equity. Based on data so far released, it appears that almost £500 million has been raised. This will be music to the ears of the second and third groups of potential beneficiaries, the 11 non-hosting counties and grassroots cricket. Ninety percent of funds from the sale of the ECB's 49 percent stake will go to the 18 counties and the MCC, with 10 percent going to the recreational game. Eighty percent of funds raised from sales of the 51 percent stakes go to the host county, with 10 percent split between the 18 counties and MCC and 10 percent going to the recreational game. Over the next eight weeks, the four IPL and four non-IPL owners will finalize their agreements with the host counties. This is too late to have a significant impact on the 2025 season, regarded as a transitional one. No doubt, at the top of discussions, will be re-branding, attracting players, and their salaries, alongside the distribution of responsibilities between the hosts and the new investors. Whilst not a new beginning, it seems clear that English and Welsh cricket will never be the same again.
BBC News
12-02-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Welsh Fire can be 'global brand' via 'landmark' deal
Welsh Fire can become a "global brand" with the help of IT entrepreneur Sanjay Govil after his "landmark" investment in The Hundred formally announced on Tuesday they have entered into an exclusivity arrangement with Govil for a 50-50 split of the franchise after they reached agreement at an auction last is the owner of Major League Cricket franchise Washington Freedom and paid £40m for an equal stake in Welsh Fire, which was valued at £80m. A statement from Welsh county said it was a "landmark moment" for the club and Govil's team will "grow the franchise's popularity with fans and players both locally and globally".Indian-American Govil is the founder and chairman of Infinite Computer Solutions, who are based in Rockville, Maryland and have an annual revenue of $2bn with 20,000 employees tech billionaire also owns Infinite and Zyter TruCare, one of the leading healthcare technology platforms with 43 million chair Mark Rhydderch-Roberts said Govil was the "preferred bidder for some time" and believes the partnership will open commercial opportunities "on a different scale across the whole spectrum of Welsh Cricket"."It was vitally important for us that any investment partner shared our values, our strategic and commercial aims and our ambition to grow as an international brand," Rhydderch-Roberts said."They share our belief that both Glamorgan and Welsh Fire have huge potential and that Welsh Fire, in particular, can become a global brand."Govil added: "I'm thrilled for this next step forward in renewing and expanding cricket for the next generation of fans. "I'm looking forward to the benefits our partnership will have not only for recreational cricket in the UK, but for strengthening the cross-border relationship between international teams, franchises, and fans for years to come." Lawyers representing the two parties will negotiate contractual details over the next eight said the "strength of the relationship" with Govil prompted them to increase the stake they initially planned to sell by 1% to ensure an equal ownership Govil made his first foray into professional cricket franchise ownership with Freedom during the first season of MLC in 2023 with his son Avikar also actively involved in the day-to-day running of the chief executive is Dhiraj Malhotra, who previously held the same position at Delhi DC-based franchise have a strategic partnership with Cricket New South Wales and have a strong Australian flavour to their by former Australia captain Ricky Ponting, and captained by current Australia batter Steve Smith, Freedom won the 2024 edition of addition to Ponting and Smith, Freedom also had fellow Australians Travis Head and Glenn Maxwell, New Zealand pair Rachin Ravindra and Lockie Ferguson plus South Africa's Marco Jansen on their books.A source at Freedom told BBC Sport Wales that Govil is optimistic of attracting players of a similar calibre to Fire, if commitments ECB is retaining control of The Hundred competition, but has sold stakes in eight teams valued at £950m to provide a cash injection into the the total money raised, an allocation of 10% will go straight to the recreational game. Proceeds from the 49% sales will be divided between the 18 first-class counties and the MCC.
