English cricket facing tragedy if ECB doesn’t change, warns county boss
English cricket chiefs risk the “tragedy” of counties going bust unless they offer more support to those without international matches or The Hundred, says Hampshire chief Rod Bransgrove.
Sussex are among those to have suffered financial difficulties, leading to a points deduction from the England and Wales Cricket Board and the departure of chairman Jon Filby.
Bransgrove says he sympathises with the plight of Hampshire’s south coast neighbours and fears that they are by no means the only county in danger of disappearing.
“I’m very conscious of the situation that Sussex find themselves in and I’m very sympathetic towards them,” he told BBC South Today.
“There’s not only Sussex, there’s a few of them who have a very difficult job in balancing the books and have the odds stacked against them.
“Unless the national governing body comes to the table then I think we’ll lose counties and I think that would be a tragedy and not fair either.
English cricket’s finances in distress
“It’s very difficult for those clubs who don’t offer international cricket, Hundred or franchise cricket – they’re not actually working to the same financial model.
“I don’t want to get into a long debate about the ECB but I do believe that they should be getting more support from the centre, not being told that they have to diversify their business. I think that’s completely wrong.”
An independent report into English cricket’s finances by restructuring firm Leonard Curtis last year criticised a “yawning gap” between counties who host The Hundred and the rest.
A big three of Surrey, Lancashire and Warwickshire generated 44 per cent of all county revenues, the report found.
The ECB’s sale of stakes in the eight Hundred franchises last year raised £520m, but counties must abide by strict criteria to access the funds.
Hampshire, which hosts the Southern Brave franchise, agreed to a staggered takeover by GMR Group, owner of Indian Premier League team the Delhi Capitals in 2024.