According to reports floating around, there seems to be a distinct possibility of the participating franchises of The Hundred to be renamed by franchise owners of the Indian Premier League as the England Cricket Board is slated to disperse shares in the eight teams in September, later this year.
The ECB also plans on gravitating intensified reach on their franchise competition, and that even a minority investment will give the new owners an incredible pedestal from where they could hugely benefit, according to a report put forth by The Guardian.
It was also disseminated that the amount contributed by the several IPL owners will be the most crucial factor in terms of letting them go through with the change of names of the franchises of The Hundred.
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“All the IPL owners are saying they will bid, but they will want some control for their cash. It’s essentially a big brand play for the IPL, so we expect them to push for name changes, which will depend on the amount they have invested,” a source involved in the sale process was quoted as saying in the report.
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The report also went on to mention that the London Spirit are deemed to be bringing in almost 25% of the cash coming in due to the immense valuation of the franchise, with it also being stated that the owners of the joint-most successful franchise of the IPL (Mumbai Indians) as well as its sister franchises like the MI New York, MI
Emirates, and MI Cape Town, the Ambani family, are relishing the gleaming prospect of making a substantial bid for the Spirit and rebranding it as MI London.
“London Spirit are viewed as the jewel in the crown of The Hundred auction and are expected to attract bids worth
several times more than many of the other franchises when the ECB begins the process of selling 49% of the eight teams next month,” said the report, while adding that London Spirit may account for a quarter of the sales revenue of The Hundred.
The aforementioned development goes along with the surmise that the Rajasthan Royals will take a shot at the Northern Superchargers as a component of their acquisition of Yorkshire, while the Delhi Capitals will look to claim a stake in the Southern Brave, on the back of their £120 million procurement of Hampshire.