Cricket Australia (CA) is pushing to end the contracting freeze affecting the Big Bash League (BBL) and Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL), with Chief Executive Officer Todd Greenberg acknowledging the process has already taken longer than it should have, according to a report by Cricinfo’s Alex Malcolm. CA is seeking a breakthrough as teams and players prepare for a new season while negotiations continue with the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA).
With just over two months remaining before the WBBL begins, the embargo has prevented teams and players from completing contracting arrangements. Discussions between CA and the ACA include proposed changes to the player-pay framework and the way the competitions operate in a global market offering cricketers an expanding range of franchise opportunities.
Greenberg calls for contracting breakthrough
Speaking to media in Darwin during Australia’s first Test against Bangladesh, Greenberg said: “We’ve got to unlock the contracting system pretty quickly.”
He added: “I think there’s some final conversations going on at the moment, but yeah, we should have resolved it by now, so we’ve got to get moving.”
The immediate negotiations include the future of the overseas player draft and how the existing salary cap is distributed. Australian BBL players have faced a financial gap compared with overseas recruits and the remuneration available in competitions including the SA20 and ILT20, prompting discussions about directing more of the established salary cap towards domestic players.
Removing the overseas draft could create another short-term complication, with unsigned international players potentially commanding higher salaries while a number of Australian players remain tied to existing contracts.
Greenberg noted: “We’ve got a big season to run. We want to be as successful as we can.”
Revenue sharing remains unresolved
Beyond the immediate contracting impasse, CA and the ACA are negotiating over the longer-term Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which currently runs until 2028. The players presently receive a 27.5% revenue share, while the ACA is seeking an increase.
The two organisations have yet to bridge that difference despite Greenberg speaking with ACA Chief Executive Officer Paul Marsh on Wednesday. “We’re just at a fundamental difference at the moment,” Greenberg stated.
CA continues to support revenue sharing as the underlying model for player remuneration. Greenberg continued: “Australian cricket are strong believers and supporters of the revenue share model. I think it’s been great for cricket. It’s great for the players.”
The disagreement instead centres on the size of that share. “What we’re not supportive of is increasing the amount of percentage [share] that is. And so the ACA have put forward a proposal which increases it, and we’ve rejected that one. So we’ve got to find a way to get an outcome that’s palatable for the ACA and palatable for us,” he added.
The negotiations also provide an opportunity to reconsider how CA, state, BBL and WBBL contracts operate as international and domestic commitments increasingly compete with franchise opportunities around the world. The number of contracts, their value and the flexibility attached to playing commitments are among the areas under consideration.
Big Bash investment decision moves closer
The contracting negotiations are unfolding alongside CA’s separate effort to introduce private investment into the Big Bash. States asked CA in June to reach an agreement with the ACA as one of four principles to be addressed before BBL teams could be offered to private investors.
Following the latest update to the CA Board, Greenberg remains positive about progress on the investment process. Victoria, Western Australia and Tasmania are keen to move forward, while discussions continue with New South Wales and Queensland over concerns surrounding proposed future funding models.
Greenberg said: “Yesterday was an important moment for the board to get the latest update. I would suggest that by early to mid-September we will effectively make a final determination on the project.”
Before that decision, Greenberg and CA Chair Mike Baird are due to meet the boards of New South Wales Cricket and Queensland Cricket in person.
Greenberg added: “Mike and I have got sessions with the boards of both New South Wales Cricket and Queensland Cricket in the next few weeks, and we want to have those conversations and we want to have them in person before we go back to the board in September to make a final call.”
CA is therefore approaching two significant decisions for the Big Bash on different timelines: resolving the immediate contracting restrictions ahead of the coming season and determining its path towards private investment, with the latter expected to reach a final decision by early to mid-September.
