Lalit Modi: ECB’s Financial Projections for ‘The Hundred’ Out of Touch with Reality

Lalit Modi, who created the wildly popular Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008, believed that the England and Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB) financial estimates regarding the profitability of its pet project, “The Hundred,” are mostly “disconnected from reality.”

Modi was fairly certain that The Hundred would never be able to reach the same global audience as the phenomenally successful IPL.

The Indian cricket board (ECB) is searching for wealthy Indian investors, ideally those who own IPL franchises and have holdings in other international leagues.

However, the former IPL commissioner said in a series of tweets accompanied by charted figures that not a single one of The Hundred franchises could be valued at a sum greater than GBP 5 million to USD 1 billion.

“The ECB’s financial estimates for The Hundred seem unnecessarily rosy and unrealistic, especially when looking beyond 2026. In light of the global competition from other cricket leagues such as the Indian Premier League, the figures for International TV rights are illogical.

“It is improbable that The Hundred will draw in the required global viewership to support these exaggerated figures,” Modi tweeted.

Eight teams compete in The Hundred: the Birmingham Phoenix, London Spirit, Manchester Originals, Northern Superchargers, Oval Invincibles, Southern Brave, Trent Rockets, and Welsh Fire. Each team plays 100 balls per inning for 65 minutes.

In truth, Modi refuted the lofty claims of the cricket board. Modi had sought to purchase out the ‘The Hundred’ for USD 1 billion for eternity, but the ECB wasn’t interested.

Domestically, it is implausible to expect sponsorship after 2027, even though an increase in TV rights from GBP 54 million to GBP 85 million is conceivable.

The former vice-president of the BCCI stated, “The ECB’s hope for sustained sponsorship growth into 2029–30 seems more like wishful thinking than a realistic forecast.”

Modi went on to explain that the revenue generated by his “baby” IPL, which has media rights worth USD 6.2 billion, is the result of 16 years of consistent growth.

“There’s no strong foundation to assume ongoing revenue increase at the extent predicted, even if they receive the advantage for 2027–2028. The IPL, where franchises are valued at USD 1 billion based on 16 years of performance, dwarfs the ECB’s confidence.

In contrast, The Hundred’s teams are estimated by my analysis to be worth between GBP 5 million and GBP 25 million in the best-case scenario, with Manchester reaching a maximum value of GBP 8.5 million.

‘The Hundred’ can’t even come close to matching the money made by the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), according to Modi.

Even worse, ‘The Hundred’ isn’t even profitable enough to compete with the Caribbean Premier League, which is a sobering testament to its incapacity.

“The Hundred appears to be on shaky financial ground, with projections that fail to inspire confidence in its long-term viability as these look dangerously overambitious and unsustainable,” he further stated.

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