The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has created a revised set of terms for its sale of 49% of The Hundred franchises to private investors, following pushback over governance rights, long-term value guarantees, and potential financial risks. The new document, distributed to committed investor groups last weekend and obtained by Sky News, reportedly includes significant structural changes designed to reassure investors ahead of a final agreement.
The ECB is under pressure to complete these transactions by the revised target date of April 29. The investors – who include prominent tech CEOs like Satya Nadella and Sundar Pichai, and other franchise-owning tycoons like the Ambani family and Todd Boehly – have been reluctant to commit their collective £520m on the ECB’s terms.
In addition to these concessions, the ECB are also apparently pressuring these investors to finalize deals by using additional levers. Reportedly, the ECB has told investors that those who do not complete their deals in time would forfeit their rights to additional dividends as part of ownership.
The key updated provisions contained in the document include:
Revised governance structure and investor protections
The ECB’s updated document outlines significant changes to the governance framework. A key revision centers on limiting the ECB’s unilateral control over the newly created “Hundred Board” (HB), the league’s primary decision-making body, which will replace the existing “Hundred Committee,” set to be disbanded:
“The HB Agreement now protects teams from future changes, meaning [the] ECB can no longer unilaterally amend the decision-making and other powers of the HB.”
Instead, any amendment to the HB Agreement will require:
- A majority vote of investor members of the HB
- Approval by two-thirds of all HB members
- Endorsement from the ECB board
This “triple trigger” voting framework will also apply to post-2029 UK media rights decisions.
Composition of The Hundred Board (HB)
The revised document specifies that the HB will consist of 20 members:
- Four representatives from the ECB
- Two from each of the eight teams (16 total)
However, the ECB representatives will each carry double voting rights, giving them significant influence in board decisions despite being outnumbered in headcount.
The Chair of the Hundred Board will be appointed by the ECB and be a then-current ECB’s board member.
The Hundred Board will appoint the league’s Managing Director for a contract period of at least five years.
UK media rights: default bundled, unbundled in future
The ECB’s document addresses concerns over future media rights sales:
“For the 2029 [media rights] cycle, the default position is the UK media rights will be sold on a bundled basis, with a floor valuation of £51m per year for The Hundred.”
In addition, even though the rights will be bundled, the document continues, “for the 2029 cycle, ECB will request that UK rights bidders provide an itemized pricing allocation for The Hundred and non-Hundred rights to provide transparency on value of The Hundred.”
Subsequently, for cycles beyond 2029, the default model will shift to an unbundled sale—separating The Hundred from broader ECB media rights—presumably unless all voting triggers agree otherwise.
Team protections, revenue allocation, and potential expansion
To alleviate fears of being financially undercut, existing franchises are guaranteed a revenue distribution formula.
Meanwhile, no expansion of The Hundred is allowed until 2029. At that point, new franchises can only be added if they prove their ability to “unlock a new fan base and complementary ticket sales” and have cricket-specific stadiums that are not home to an existing franchise.
Termination events revised to reduce investor risk
Several critical termination clauses have been overhauled. The ECB can no longer unilaterally shut down The Hundred for at least seven years. Key new protections include:
- Removal of the ECB Member Resolution termination clause
- No termination based on breaches by individual clubs
- Force majeure must disrupt two consecutive seasons to trigger league-wide termination
- Termination for financial reasons only applies if The Hundred creates unsustainable cash losses for the ECB:
“In the unlikely event the ECB decides to end its involvement in The Hundred, the ECB is committed to providing teams with an opportunity to maintain the competition independently, including using reasonable endeavours to make players, venues and a suitable playing window available to the competition.”
Additionally, the ECB has committed that in the event of termination it would “not launch or sanction a competing professional league for a period of 4 years”.
Investor liability and legal coverage
To further protect investors:
- The ECB has capped liabilities related to warranties and tax claims at £1
- Warranties are limited to basic, knowledge-qualified terms, with no additional indemnities offered
“The ECB will provide fundamental warranties only and will provide no other indemnities or warranties.”
Investor anxiety over long-term value
Despite these reassurances, some investor concerns remain unresolved—especially regarding long-term returns. One unnamed investor voiced anxiety over what happens beyond the initial term, including the seven year non-termination period:
“What happens in year eight? These investors have agreed to pay hundreds of millions of pounds with no guarantee of terminal value.”
Outlook
The ECB hopes the changes will be enough to finalize the deal, which has been in the works for several months. The ECB has also been open about the importance of this equity injection to bolstering and securing the domestic English cricket structure.
With mounting pressure and rising stakes, all eyes are now on how the ECB navigates the home stretch of this high-value negotiation.
Name of Author: Cricexec Staff
