Hundred: Northern Superchargers to become Sunrisers Leeds
The Northern Superchargers Hundred franchise is set to be known as Sunrisers Leeds from the 2026 season, new documents reveal.
A complete 100 per cent stake in the Headingley-based cricket team was sold by the England and Wales Cricket Board and Yorkshire County Cricket Club to Indian conglomerate the Sun Group for around £100m.
The Sun Group added the Leeds team to a portfolio that includes IPL franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad and South African outfit Sunrisers Eastern Cape.
And it looks as though the Superchargers will go by Sunrisers Leeds next season after a name change was registered on Companies House.
It follows news that the Manchester Originals will become the Manchester Super Giants, while Oval Invincibles is set to become MI (Mumbai Indians) London.
The eight stakes – each valued at 49 per cent – were all sold in an auction earlier this year, while host counties had the power to sell as much or little of their gifted 51 per cent as they wished.
Stake sales give influence to a number of Indian and American-Indian investors across the eight Hundred franchises, with a say across the likes of name changes, kit colours, player participation, sponsorship deals and commercial pathways.
Northern Superchargers to Sunrisers Leeds
Late last month the new Hundred investors confirmed that an auction will replace a player draft, while franchises will have new maximum and minimum salary budgets.
“This is a hugely exciting time for The Hundred,” said the tournament’s managing director Vikram Banerjee.
“These changes will help us make the competition even better, ensuring we get the best players in the world and improving the standard of cricket and level of entertainment further again.
“Working alongside our new partners we’ve been exploring how we can take The Hundred forward and we’ve decided that moving to an auction will allow us to improve the competition.
“For a competition that has always been proud to innovate, we’re delighted to be holding the first auction in major UK sport.
“In making this decision, we have stuck to three key principles: i) ensuring The Hundred attracts the best players in the world, ii) maintaining a competitive balance between the squads, iii) guaranteeing whatever changes we make work across the men’s and women’s games.”