As previously advised, the Club will be holding a special members' forum during the interval of Middlesex's home Metro Bank One-Day Cup match versus Somerset at Lord's on Sunday 11th August at the top of the Mound Stand on Centurions Terrace to discuss the latest developments on external investment into the Hundred. The forum will begin promptly at the start of the interval.
Due to the restriction on time available for this forum, which will need to be completed within the time allotted to the interval of the game, members are being emailed the following document, which outlines the Club's understanding of the latest situation regarding this matter, to ensure members are fully briefed ahead of the forum, and to ensure the meeting both stays focussed and runs to time.
Both the Chair, Richard Sykes, and the CEO, Andrew Cornish, will discuss the latest developments with all members in attendance, and upon completion of the match interval, will remain available for members to speak to in person, should there be any further questions that remain unanswered.
The following information is being emailed to all members who the Club has a valid email address for, however for those who have opted out of receiving emails from the Club, the briefing document is shown below...
Member briefing - The Hundred
Introduction
Ahead of the Members Forum on 11 August we have set out below our latest understanding of the discussions surrounding seeking external investment into The Hundred and what that might mean for Middlesex.
Richard Sykes (Chair) and Andrew Cornish (CEO ) will be able to answer members questions and take members observations and comments at the forum but in advance of that, and for those members who will be unable to join the forum, we have set out below our understanding of the latest intentions of the ECB as to how the investment process will work and what this means for the game as a whole. Active consultation continues between the ECB and the FCC’s, so at this stage nothing is formally agreed.
Overall objectives
The core objectives that underpin the establishment of the Hundred, as discussed at previous Members forums are to:
Underlying principles
The core principles of how the Hundred franchises will be established are as follows:
Use of proceeds arising from the initial sale of the 49% interest
10% of proceeds raised from both ECB and host Club shareholdings will be allocated to the recreational game.
Balance of Proceeds raised from ECB’s 49% will be distributed to the FCCs based on the following thresholds:
Expansion criteria
As per the core principles, the game will allow for expansion of The Hundred top tier from 2029 (or earlier if agreed) based on a set of expansion criteria. Criteria consist of both competition (incl. central revenue growth) and team-based elements (incl. minimum venue capacity and compliance with ECB Facility Standards) which need to be met to enable expansion.
These criteria are likely to include the requirement to have a facility with the ability to host 8000 spectators as a minimum, require the county to demonstrate that there is both spectator demand and wider audience reach from introducing a new franchise, that the quality of the tournament will be enhanced retaining the “best v best“ concepts across both the men’s and women’s game and that the financial strength of the competition will be increased.
Other matters under consideration
1) What cricket will be played by the non host counties during the Hundred ?
This remains under discussion and will be discussed in 2025 as part of the wider scheduling of the whole game . However there is a strong desire by a number of counties, including MCCC , that all counties should move to playing hundred cricket alongside the franchise competition
2) Will there be a vote required of all FCCs?
Currently the intention of the ECB is to reach agreement across the game on a consensus basis such that there will not be a requirement to have a game wide vote.
3) What ability is there for MCCC to have any involvement in London Spirit alongside the MCC?
We are in discussions with the MCC offering to support the MCC in cricketing aspects of London Spirit but there are no current agreements in place along these lines.
4) Do MCCC have ambitions to be an expansion team?
The independent research on the Hundred’s demonstrates that a 3rd London team is viable. As such if MCCC were not involved with London Spirit then consideration to becoming that 3rd team should be evaluated and discussed with members.
We look forward to welcoming members to the forum on 11th August, and welcome any questions members have on any of the above or any other matters relating to the investment into the Hundred.
