Ambanis & Brady group agree Hundred deals

The first two stakes of the first two teams in The Hundred have been agreed to be worth a combined £100 million thanks to the wealthiest Indian family and Birmingham City’s Tom Brady-backed owners.

In Thursday’s first pair of sales, a 49% stake in Oval Invincibles was won by Reliance Industries Limited, owned by the multi-billionaire Ambani family. Mumbai Indians, the Indian Premier League team, are also under Reliance’s control.

Knighthead Capital, the US group that includes legendary NFL quarterback Brady, then agreed to buy 49% in Birmingham Phoenix. In 2023, Knighthead made an investment in Birmingham City Football Club.

Surrey and Warwickshire, the hosts of Invincibles and Phoenix, respectively, opted to keep their 51% stakes in each franchise that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) had given them.

The Hundred’s first two teams, The Invincibles and Phoenix Auctions, offered stakes in the first two, with the rest six taking place in the coming days.

A 100% stake in Invincibles was valued at about £120m, making the 49% deal worth about £60m. Since Phoenix were valued at about $80 million, the 49% deal is valued at $40 million, which indicates that the total sales have been around $100 million.

In order to finalize the partnerships, the winning bidders now have an eight-week exclusivity period.

Surrey, Warwickshire and the ECB declined to comment.

The Invincibles team will be associated with a Mumbai Indians group that includes an Indian women’s premier league team, a team from South Africa, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates.

The Invincibles men are two-time and current Hundred champions, while the women were winners in both 2021 and 2022.

The ECB is expected to confirm the eight preferred bidders at the end of the week as the sales continue through Friday and into the following week.

The Hundred competition is still under the control of the ECB, but it is selling stakes in the teams to raise money for the game in this nation.

The ECB will then sell the remaining 49% of the franchise, which hosts of the eight teams have been given a 51% stake in either selling or keeping.

The eight hosts are Lord’s (Marylebone Cricket Club – MCC/London Spirit), The Oval (Surrey/ Oval Invincibles), Southampton (Hampshire/Southern Brave), Cardiff (Glamorgan/Welsh Fire), Trent Bridge (Nottinghamshire/Trent Rockets), Edgbaston (Warwickshire/Birmingham Phoenix), Old Trafford (Lancashire/Manchester Originals) and Headingley (Yorkshire/Northern Superchargers).

Of the 51% the hosts have been given, they can keep all, or choose to sell all or part of their stake.

10% of the total raised will go directly toward the recreational game. The 18 first-class counties will receive the MCC’s profits from the 49% sales.

English cricket has just had its most significant moment since the development of professional T20 more than 20 years ago, if a virtual auction on a grey Thursday in January doesn’t sound too exciting.

The game’s future will be safeguarded by inviting investment for many years, but it will also change its trajectory, which might be permanently.

IPL teams were always going to be interested in getting into English cricket. Mumbai Indians, owned by the famous Ambani family, are perhaps the most glamorous of all. It should come as no surprise that one of the two London Hundred teams, which are regarded as the most lucrative, has departed from Reliance.

Mumbai Indians and the rest of the IPL across franchise cricket leagues have paved the way for global football networks in much the same way that Manchester City and other Premier League clubs have done so.

English cricket has historically been played outside of the global framework, while English football frequently serves as the heart of a multi-club system. Now, Mumbai have a foothold in one of this country’s oldest cricketing institutions: The Oval.

The other Mumbai teams were created from scratch in new leagues, which is a significant difference. Existing entities include The Invincibles. With Surrey, the biggest county side in England, owning the majority share, Reliance may not have the final say in cricketing matters.

For Knighthead, investment in the Phoenix strengthens its ties to Birmingham, creating a unified sporting brand in the city.