ECB to oppose $500m Saudi-funded global T20 league, citing packed schedule
According to a report by the Sydney Morning Herald on Saturday, the proposed tournament, named the 'Grand Slam of Cricket,' would feature eight teams competing across four different locations annually. Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund was set to back the venture financially.
However, ECB chief executive Richard Gould ruled out the idea, stating that the existing cricket structure leaves no room for such an event.
'With the busy international calendar, a host of established franchise leagues around the world, and existing concerns about player workloads, there is no scope or demand for such an idea,' Gould told SMH on Tuesday. 'It's not something that we would support.'
The ECB remains committed to its own franchise tournament, The Hundred, which recently secured a $1.27 billion financial boost through private investments.
The Indian Premier League (IPL) remains the most dominant T20 franchise competition, while leagues in Australia, Pakistan, South Africa, the West Indies, and the UAE also have strong followings.
Meanwhile, the Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) has expressed interest in Saudi Arabia's T20 proposal, citing potential financial and equity benefits for players.
'The ACA's early interest in exploring this concept is motivated by a desire to develop and normalize best-practice collective bargaining and an international gender-equity pay model for male and female cricketers,' the players' union was quoted as saying in the report.
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