Vision The Commercial Future Of

A Management Report published and distributed by International Marketing Reports Ltd Suite 7 33 Chapel Street Buckfastleigh TQ11 0AB

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Copyright ©2009 by International Marketing Reports Ltd All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher and copyright owner. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of the information, advice and comment in this publication, the publisher cannot accept responsibility for any errors. The views expressed in this report are not necessarily those of the publisher.

2 The Author David Smith is a journalist whose specialist areas are business reporting and cricket. He was chief writer on cricket websites produced by both and Channel 5, and writes on cricket and rugby for The Times. He will be covering the 2009 Ashes for Channel 5's website. His writing on business-related subjects has appeared in several UK national papers, including , The Guardian and The Times.

Acknowledgements The author and publishers would like to thank the following for their invaluable help in the preparation of this report: James Buttler, Will Collinson, Nigel Currie, Michael Fordham, Mark Foster, Michael Goldman, Gideon Haigh, Steven Hirst, Nick Hoult, Christopher Hyde, Esau Isaac, Peter Jackson, Kate Johns, Richard Kay, Glenn Lovett, James Matheson, Paul Mitchell, Tim Percival, Adrian Pritchard, Will Reynolds, Stuart Robertson, Katie .

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Table Of Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...... 13 TV Rights Growth ...... 13 Sponsorship ...... 14 Cricket Attendance ...... 15 The Development Of Twenty20 ...... 15 The ...... 16 Twenty20 And The ECB ...... 16 Case Studies ...... 17 The Future ...... 17

1. SPONSORSHIP RIGHTS IN CRICKET ...... 18 Governing Body Sponsorship Deals ...... 18 Domestic Cricket Club Sponsorship Deals ...... 26 ...... 26 ...... 30 ...... 38 ...... 42 ...... 42 ...... 43 ...... 44 Cricket Sponsorship Analysis ...... 45 Global Cricket Sponsorship ...... 45 Twenty20 Cricket Sponsorship ...... 46 Australian Cricket Sponsorship ...... 47 English Cricket Sponsorship ...... 48 Indian Cricket Sponsorship ...... 49

2. CRICKET ATTENDANCE ...... 51 ...... 51 Australia ...... 52 England ...... 56 India ...... 63 South Africa ...... 64

3. CRICKET TV RIGHTS ...... 67 International...... 69 Australia ...... 70 England ...... 71 India ...... 72 New Zealand ...... 73 Pakistan ...... 74 ...... 74 South Africa ...... 75 West Indies...... 75 ...... 76

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4. TWENTY20 – THE HISTORY ...... 77 The Indian Premier League And ...... 80 The IMG Formula For Success ...... 81 The IPL‟s Financial Results ...... 83 Franchisees ...... 84 Sponsor Reaction ...... 86 Television Audiences ...... 87 Public Reaction ...... 90 Conclusion ...... 92 Valuations To Rise ...... 95 Terrorism ...... 95 IPL Moves To South Africa ...... 96 Indian Cricket League ...... 97 ‟s Twenty20 tournaments ...... 101

5. THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE AND THE ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE ...... 106 Sponsors‟ Responses To The Twenty20 Cup ...... 106 County Responses To The Twenty20 Cup ...... 109 Timing ...... 109 Weather ...... 110 Critical Success Factors ...... 110 Future Critical Success Factors ...... 110 Finances ...... 111 New Audience ...... 111 ECB Research ...... 111 Differentiation ...... 112 The Recession ...... 115 The Question Of Overkill ...... 116 The Champions League ...... 118 Schedule ...... 118 Sponsors...... 119

6. INTERNATIONAL TWENTY20 ...... 121 History ...... 121 Other Twenty20 Tournaments Around The World ...... 121

7. CASE STUDY. STANDARD BANK‟S SPONSORSHIP OF ...... 123 Background ...... 123 Objectives ...... 124 Implementation ...... 124 Pillars Of Experience ...... 125 Cricket Experience ...... 125 Stadium Experience ...... 125 Broadcast Experience ...... 126 Integrated Marketing Campaign ...... 126

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Results ...... 128 Partnerships ...... 129 Conclusion ...... 129

8. CASE STUDY. CCC – MARKETING OPERATIONS ...... 131 Background ...... 131 Objectives ...... 132 Marketing Implementation ...... 133 Ticket Promotion ...... 133 Marketing To Members ...... 138 Merchandise ...... 139 Catering ...... 139 Stadium Revenues ...... 140 Sponsorship Marketing ...... 140 Community Programme ...... 154 Partners ...... 155 Yorkshire Cricket Board ...... 155 Yorkshire Women‟s Cricket Association ...... 155 Yorkshire Schools Cricket Association ...... 155 Yorkshire Coaches Cricket Association ...... 155 Yorkshire Cricket Board Association of Cricket Officials ...... 156 Yorkshire Cricket Board Groundsman Association ...... 156 The Yorkshire Region ...... 156 Cricket In Yorkshire ...... 157 Mission Statement ...... 157 Objectives ...... 157 Key Strategic Pillars ...... 158 Involvement ...... 158 Education ...... 158 Social Capital ...... 159 Involvement ...... 159 & Bingley Centre ...... 159 Target: ...... 159 Benefits: ...... 160 Results ...... 160 Pathways To Excellence...... 160 Target ...... 160 Benefits ...... 161 Results ...... 161 Mynahs And Yorkshire Tykes Membership Clubs ...... 161 Target ...... 162 Benefits ...... 162 Results ...... 162 Young People‟s Competitions ...... 162 Opportunities ...... 163 Primary School Competitions ...... 163

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Secondary School Competitions ...... 163 Club Junior Cricket ...... 163 District Cricket ...... 164 Regional Cricket ...... 164 Representative Cricket ...... 164 Drax Cup The Programme ...... 164 Target ...... 164 Benefits ...... 164 Results ...... 164 Bradford Heart Of The Community ...... 165 Target ...... 165 Benefits ...... 165 Bradford Community ...... 166 Results ...... 166 Yorkshire Player Coaching Academies ...... 167 The Cricket Academy ...... 167 Pro-Coach Cricket Academy ...... 167 Kids for a Quid ...... 168 Target ...... 168 Benefits ...... 168 Results ...... 168 Education ...... 169 Learning Centre ...... 169 Playing for Success...... 169 Positive Futures ...... 169 Cricket in the Classroom ...... 169 Education ...... 170 Target ...... 171 Results ...... 171 2009 ...... 171 The Performance Lifestyle Programme ...... 172 Target ...... 172 Benefits ...... 172 Stadium Days - A Day In The Life Of Carnegie ...... 173 Case Study – Young Leaders ...... 173 YCCC School Coaching Sessions And Assemblies ...... 174 Target ...... 174 Benefits ...... 174 Results ...... 174 Case Study – Spofforth C of E School Assembly ...... 174 Colleges ...... 175 Target ...... 175 Benefits ...... 175 Results ...... 175 2009 ...... 176

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The Sticky ...... 176 Target Audience ...... 177 Benefits ...... 177 Results ...... 177 Social Capital ...... 178 Primary Care Trust ...... 178 Target ...... 178 Results ...... 178 Beeston Smoke Free Homes Cricket Festival ...... 179 Target ...... 180 Results ...... 180 Disability Cricket ...... 180 Results ...... 180 BAME Communities ...... 182 Target ...... 182 Results ...... 183 Women And Girls ...... 184 Target ...... 184 Results ...... 184 2009 ...... 185 The Plan For 2009 ...... 188 Charitable Status ...... 188 Core Programmes And Initiatives ...... 188 Outreach Programmes ...... 189 Headingley Community...... 189 Evaluation And Feedback ...... 190 Conclusion ...... 190

9. THE FUTURE ...... 192 Market Forces ...... 192 China And The Rest Of The World ...... 199 Conclusion ...... 200

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Table Of Charts, Figures And Tables Table 1.1. ICC Sponsors ...... 18 Table 1.2. Sponsors ...... 19 Table 1.3. English Cricket Board Sponsors ...... 20 Table 1.4. Board of Control for Sponsors ...... 21 Table 1.5. Sponsors ...... 21 Table 1.6. Sponsors ...... 22 Table 1.7. Cricket South Africa Sponsors ...... 23 Table 1.8. Sponsors ...... 23 Table 1.9. West Indies Cricket Board Sponsors ...... 24 Table 1.10. Minor Countries Cricket Sponsors ...... 25 Table 1.11. Australian Twenty20 Team Sponsors ...... 26 Table 1.12. Cricket Victoria Sponsors ...... 26 Table 1.13. New South Sponsors ...... 27 Table 1.14. Queensland Sponsors...... 27 Table 1.15. South Australia Sponsors ...... 28 Table 1.16. Tasmania Sponsors ...... 28 Table 1.17. Sponsors ...... 29 Table 1.18. Derbyshire Club Sponsors ...... 30 Table 1.19. Durham County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 30 Table 1.20. Essex County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 31 Table 1.21. County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 31 Table 1.22. Gloucestershire County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 31 Table 1.23. Hampshire County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 32 Table 1.24. County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 32 Table 1.25. County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 32 Table 1.26. Leicestershire County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 33 Table 1.27. County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 33 Table 1.28. County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 33 Table 1.29. Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 33 Table 1.30. County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 34 Table 1.31. County Cricket Club Sponsors...... 35 Table 1.32. County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 36 Table 1.33. Yorkshire County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 37 Table 1.34. Warwickshire County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 37 Table 1.35. Worcestershire County Cricket Club Sponsors ...... 37 Table 1.36. India Team Franchisees And Budgets ...... 38 Table 1.37. Royal Challengers Sponsors ...... 38 Table 1.38. Super Kings Sponsors ...... 39 Table 1.39 Daredevils Sponsors...... 39 Table 1.40 Sponsors...... 40 Table 1.41. Knight Riders Sponsors ...... 40 Table 1.42. Kings XI Punjab Sponsors ...... 41 Table 1.43. Indians Sponsors ...... 41 Table 1.44. Rajastan Royals Sponsors ...... 41 Table 1.45. South African Domestic Team Sponsors ...... 42

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Table 1.46. New Zealand Domestic Team Sponsors ...... 42 Table 1.47. Pakistan Domestic Team Sponsors ...... 43 Table 1.48. West Indies Domestic Team Sponsors ...... 44 Chart 1.1. Global Cricket Sponsorship Deals By Industry Sector ...... 45 Chart 1.2 Twenty20 Cricket Sponsors By Industry Sector ...... 46 Chart 1.3 Australian Cricket Sponsorship Deals By Industry Sector ...... 47 Chart 1.4. English Cricket Sponsorship Deals By Industry Sector ...... 48 Chart 1.5. Indian Cricket Sponsorship Deals By Industry Sector ...... 49

Table 2.1. Cricket World Cup Attendance 1975-2007 ...... 51 Chart 2.1. Total Attendance - Australian Test Match Cricket 1997-2008 ...... 53 Chart 2.2. Test v Ashes Test Average Attendance – Australia 1998-2007 ...... 53 Chart 2.3. Total Attendance – Australia ODIs 1990-2007 ...... 54 Table 2.2. KFC Big Bash Attendance 2005-2009 ...... 55 Table 2.3. English Cricket Attendance Summary – All Series 1997-2008 ...... 56 Chart 2.4. Total Attendance – English Cricket 1997-2008 ...... 57 Chart 2.5. Total Attendance – English International Cricket 1997-2008 ...... 57 Chart 2.6. Total Attendance – English Domestic Cricket 1997-2008 ...... 58 Chart 2.7. Total Attendance - English Test Match Cricket 1997-2008 ...... 58 Chart 2.8. Total Attendance - English One Day Internationals 1997-2008 ...... 59 Chart 2.9. Total Attendance - English International Twenty20 1997-2008 ...... 60 Chart 2.10. Total Attendance - English 1997-2008 ...... 60 Chart 2.11. Total Attendance – C&G / 1997-2008 ..... 61 Chart 2.12. Total Attendance – English Twenty20 Cup 2003 - 2008 ...... 62 Chart 2.13. Total Attendance - English NUL/Totesport/ 1997-2008 ...... 63 Table 2.4. Indian Premier League Attendance 2008 ...... 63 Chart 2.14. Standard Bank Pro20 Series Attendance 2004-07 ...... 64 Table 2.5. Standard Bank Pro20 Series - Attendance By Match 2004...... 64 Table 2.6. Standard Bank Pro20 Series - Attendance By Match 2005...... 65 Table 2.7. Standard Bank Pro20 Series - Attendance By Match 2006...... 65 Table 2.8. Standard Bank Pro20 Series - Attendance By Match 2007...... 66

Table 3.1.. Cricket Broadcast Rights – International Events ...... 69 Table 3.2.. Cricket Broadcast Rights – Twenty20 Champions League ...... 69 Table 3.3. Cricket Broadcast Rights - Australia ...... 70 Table 3.4. Cricket Broadcast Rights - England ...... 71 Table 3.5. Cricket Broadcast Rights - India ...... 72 Table 3.5b. Cricket Broadcast Rights - India ...... 73 Table 3.6. Cricket Broadcast Rights – New Zealand...... 73 Table3.7. Cricket Broadcast Rights – Pakistan ...... 74 Table 3.8. Cricket Broadcast Rights – Sri Lanka ...... 74 Table 3.9. Cricket Broadcast Rights – South Africa ...... 75 Table 3.10. Cricket Broadcast Rights – West Indies ...... 75 Table 3.11. Cricket Broadcast Rights – USA ...... 76

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Table 4.1. IPL Team Revenue / Cost Analysis 2008 ...... 85 Chart 4.1. TV Ratings – Indian v International Events (2008) ...... 87 Table 4.2. Indian TV Ratings Preceding IPL 2008 ...... 88 Table 4.3. Indian TV Ratings – IPL 2008 Weeks 1&2 ...... 88 Table 4.3b. Indian TV Ratings – IPL 2008 Weeks 3-6 ...... 89 Table 4.3c. Indian TV Ratings – IPL 2008 Weeks 6&7 ...... 90 Table 4.4. TV Ratings IPL v ICL ...... 99

Table 6.1. Twenty20 Tournaments Around The World ...... 122

Figure 8.1. Twenty20 Cup Promotional Flyer ...... 134 Figure 8.2. ODI Promotional Poster ...... 138 Figure 8.3. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Introduction ...... 141 Figure 8.4. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Mission ...... 141 Figure 8.5. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Strategy ...... 142 Figure 8.6. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Club Appeal ...... 143 Figure 8.7. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Player Appeal (Past) ...... 143 Figure 8.8. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Player Appeal (Present) ..... 144 Figure 8.9. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Player Appeal (Future) ...... 145 Figure 8.10. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Future Developments ...... 147 Figure 8.11. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Stadium Development 1 ... 147 Figure 8.12. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Stadium Development 2 ... 148 Figure 8.13. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Stadium Development 3 ... 148 Figure 8.14. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Club Reach ...... 149 Figure 8.15. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Interest ABC1s ...... 149 Figure 8.16. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Appeal Of Competitions ... 150 Figure 8.17. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Cricket Interest - Gender .. 150 Figure 8.18. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Cricket Interest - Age ...... 151 Figure 8.19. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Cricket Interest By Socio- Economic Group ...... 152 Figure 8.20. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Cricket Attendance ...... 152 Figure 8.21. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Twenty20 Attendance ...... 153 Table 8.1. Yorkshire Cricket in the Community Partners ...... 155 Table 8.2. Yorkshire Cricket In The Community Outcomes ...... 187

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List of Abbreviations BCCI – Board of Control for Cricket in India CA – Cricket Australia DTH – Direct-to-home (Television) ECB – English Cricket Board EPL – English Premier League ICC – International Cricket Council ICL – India Cricket League IPL – Indian Premier League IMG – International Management Group MCC – NZC – New Zealand Cricket ODI – One-day International PCB – Pakistan Cricket Board SBSA – Standard Bank of South Africa WICB – West Indies Cricket Board

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The report starts with a thorough listing and examination of commercial data in cricket. A comprehensive list of sponsorship deals for every governing body and professional club side globally is presented and analysed. The findings show that the leading industry sector investing in cricket is financial services.

TV Rights Growth The key revenue driver for major professional sport is now television and, in many respects, this applies to cricket more than most major sports. The media has highlighted some of the very large broadcast rights deals for (soccer) in recent years in particular. It should, however, be borne in mind that the television income for most major European football clubs represents less than half of their turnover and typically the amount is around 30-40%. Such clubs have other highly lucrative revenue streams, particularly from gate receipts but sponsorship, merchandising/licensing and hospitality can all contribute millions of euros per year.

The picture is slightly different for football‟s governing bodies, which have fewer matches to host and rely more heavily on broadcast income.

Cricket has relied more heavily on broadcast revenues than most other major sports in terms of the proportion of revenues brought into the professional sport. The ECB‟s latest £300m deal with followed an earlier £220m from the broadcaster. Given that its primary sponsors, nPower and Vodafone, were paying an estimated combined total of £8m per year, the value of television income is clear to see.

The revenue landscape has changed even more dramatically with $1bn deals for the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the Champions League for Twenty20 cricket. One of the key issues of the report is an examination of the impact of such broadcast deals. What is the effect on cricket overall of money being disproportionately channelled into the shortest form of the game? And how will cricket continue to attract widespread interest if it is removed from free-to-air television?

13 Sponsorship The financial services sector is by far the biggest sponsorship investor in cricket globally. But at a time when banks are under increasing financial and media pressure to reign in their expenditure, this will be of concern to rights holders. There is a strong argument to support sponsorship expenditure as a key business for banks, but the public perception of sponsorship remains that it is an unnecessary luxury, this is especially so where corporate hospitality packages are included as part of the contracts. Any bank laying off large numbers of staff can ill-afford to be seen having champagne receptions at prestigious sporting events regardless of the business case. It is, therefore, inevitable that expenditure from this sector will contract in the period between 2009-2011.

The second biggest sector is media, although the data is somewhat skewed by the ambiguous nature of media deals. Often what is reported as sponsorship is, at least in part, a media rights acquisition. Alcohol is the third biggest sector and is a large contributor to Australia and India in particular. Although of no immediate concern, the trend towards voluntary or legislative restrictions on alcohol promotion in many countries could spread just as has happened with tobacco.

The findings suggest that cricket urgently needs to broaden its appeal to sponsoring industry sectors to avoid being hit by spending restrictions in certain industries. For the image of the sport, it also needs to have a stronger appeal to new and dynamic businesses and business sectors. There have been some notable sponsorship deals in the telecommunications sector among national governing bodies, although England‟s deal with Vodafone, for example, will not be renewed.

Overall, however, sponsorship of cricket has shown growth and the development of Twenty20 in general, and the Indian Premier League (IPL) in particular, has added new interest in the sport, which is also translating into sponsorship and commercial opportunities.

14 Cricket Attendance One of the loudest mantras in professional cricket has been the call to stem the tide of falling interest and attendance in the face of competition from other sports and leisure activities.

Attendance data in world cricket is patchy with reliable historical data available only from Australia, England and the International Cricket Council (ICC). Such data actually shows that attendances for major series have not suffered severely in the past 20 years. In Australia, test and one-day international (ODI) series have fluctuated according the opposition, but recent peak attendances are similar to those of the early 1990s.

In England, virtually every tournament has seen a growth in attendance in the period 1998-2008. The Cricket World Cup has, overall, also seen a growth in attendance since its inception although spectator levels vary significantly depending on the country in which the event is staged.

Attendance at Twenty20 events has, of course, been seen as crucial to the future of cricket and crowds at such matches have been high with the IPL in particular generating huge interest.

The Development Of Twenty20 The report considers the origins of Twenty20 cricket in the English Cricket Board‟s (ECB) desperation to arrest dwindling attendances for county cricket. The ECB marketing director in 2002, Stuart Robertson, discusses how he instigated a rigorous marketing campaign to find out what was putting people off cricket.

The research found that cricket‟s narrow demographic largely excluded anyone but middle-class, middle-aged white men. Robertson explains how a short-form game resolved many issues of accessibility. In its first season, the Twenty20 Cup proved a huge success and continued to expand.

15 The Indian Premier League The report then considers how Robertson‟s revolution spread around the world, focusing first on IMG‟s development of the Indian Premier League as an unashamedly commercial marketing concept. It looks at how sports marketing agency, IMG whipped up a frenzy of excitement around the IPL with auctions of players and franchises, and the shrewd use of celebrities.

The IPL‟s financial deal with broadcaster Sony and World Sports Group are examined, as are the value of the franchises and sponsorship deals. The report considers how the IPL changed cricket demographics in India, how it became a focal point of social lives, and dominated TV ratings. Writers, sponsorship agents, and interested parties give their views about the IPL‟s future.

There is an examination of how the Indian Cricket League (ICL) was born out of the desire of billionaire Subhash Chandra to get high-profile cricket matches on his television channel, Zee Telefilms. A comparison is made between the popularity of the ICL and the IPL, and the likelihood of the ICL ever be sanctioned by the ICC is discussed.

Twenty20 And The ECB The report then considers the impact of Allen Stanford on English cricket. It looks at how the big-talking Texan turned heads at the ECB because they wanted their own lucrative cash cow to prevent English players signing up with the IPL. Expert commentators provide their mainly scathing views of the ECB‟s management of the affair.

An analysis of the arguments in favour of introducing a second Twenty20 tournament in England is introduced. Comments from three of the Twenty20 Cup‟s four partners, npower, Totesport and Marston‟s, illustrating how this young and dynamic form of the game can be a powerful tool for shifting brand image. The report examines the English counties‟ responses to Twenty20, and considers the ECB‟s own research into what cricket fans want. Opinion is canvassed about the key issue of whether the ECB can provide enough differentiation between the two Twenty20 tournaments to avoid confusing the public. The question of overkill is discussed and there is analysis of the

16 delays to the Champions League and consideration of the $1 billion broadcasting deal struck with ESPN.

Case Studies To illustrate some of the reasons for Twenty20‟s success, a case study examines Standard Bank‟s successful sponsorship of the Pro20 . This considers how the tournament fulfilled all its objectives and contributed to a sudden growth in the cricket fan base in South Africa, particularly among young and Black supporter groups.

A second, major case study looks at how the biggest club in England, Yorkshire CCC, maximises its commercial revenues and develops its fan base. The case study analyses the ticket marketing strategy and the sponsorship selling process. There is also a very thorough examination of the club‟s community programme, which features details of all of the numerous key initiatives and the results, which include a better relationship with many of the diverse sections of the community and more than 100,000 people having a relationship with the club.

The Future Finally, there is a lengthy discussion of what the future holds for Twenty20 cricket. Some commentators, such as Stuart Robertson, are in favour of letting market forces rip, whereas others fear for the soul of the game if there is not closer regulation. Predictions are made about the commercial future of the various , including Test matches, and players‟ views about the Twenty20 revolution are looked at. The question of whether Twenty20 should be reserved for the domestic game is considered. Views are sought on China‟s possible emergence as a cricket-playing nation.

17 1. SPONSORSHIP RIGHTS IN CRICKET

Governing Body Sponsorship Deals

Table 1.1. ICC Sponsors

Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Duration Category ICC Cricket World Cup Sponsor Reliance Mobile Telecommunications -2009 ICC Cricket World Cup Sponsor LG Telecommunications -2009 ICC Cricket World Cup Sponsor Pepsi Non-alcoholic Drinks -2009 ICC Cricket World Cup Sponsor Emirates Airline -2015 ICC Cricket World Cup Sponsor Reebok Sports -2009 Equipment/Clothing ICC Cricket World Cup Sponsor Yahoo Internet

18 Table 1.2. Cricket Australia Sponsors

Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry sector Value Duration Category Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor Commonwealth Financial Services -2009 Bank Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor Hutchison 3G Telecommunications Total 2009-13 Australia Au$25-30m Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor Fosters Alcohol Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor VB Alcohol Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor Wolf Blass Alcohol Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor Emirates Travel 2006-09 Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor Ford Automotive Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor Milo Non-alcoholic Drink Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor MasterCard Financial Services 2006-09 Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor Johnnie Walker Alcohol Total Au$20m -2011 Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor Adidas Sports Equipment/Clothing Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor KFC Food Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor Gatorade Non-alcoholic Drink Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor Weet-Bix Food -2013 Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor/Supplier Albion Headgear Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor/Supplier Kookabura Sports Equipment/Clothing Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor/Supplier Sanitarium Food -2013 Cricket Australia Australian Team Sponsor/Supplier Cadbury Non-alcoholic Drink Schweppes Cricket Australia Australian Team International Tour Travelex Financial Services Au$1m -2010 Sponsor Cricket Australia Shield Sponsor Weet-Bix Food Cricket Australia Ford Ranger One- Sponsor Ford Ranger Automotive Day Cup Cricket Australia KFC Twenty20 Cup Sponsor KFC Food

19 Table 1.3. English Cricket Board Sponsors Rights Property Sponsorship Category Sponsor Industry Sector Value Duration Holder ECB England Home International Tests Title Sponsor nPower Power Generation £4m p.a 2006-09 ECB Friends Provident Trophy Title Sponsor Friends Provident Financial Services £2m p.a 2007-09 ECB The NatWest Series, The NatWest Title Sponsor NatWest Financial Services -2009 Women‟s Series ECB County Championship Title Sponsor Victoria Financial Services 2006-09 ECB Friends Provident One-day-Trophy Title Sponsor Friends Provident Financial Services £750K p.a 2007-10 ECB England Internationals England Official Team Vodafone Telecommunications £4m p.a 2005-9 ECB England Internationals EnglandSponsor Team Kit Supplier Admiral Sports 2006-10 ECB NatWest Twenty20 Internationals Title Sponsor NatWest FinancialEquipment/Clothing Services -2009 ECB NatWest Pro40 Title Sponsor NatWest Financial Services -2009 ECB Twenty20 Cup Official Partner Totesport Gambling -2009 ECB Twenty20 Cup Official Partner nPower Power Generation £1m p.a 2006-09 ECB Twenty20 Cup Title Sponsor Clydesdale/Yorkshire Financial Services ECB Twenty20 Cup Official Partner Marston'sBank Alcohol ECB England Team Sponsor BOSS Fragrances Cosmetics -2009 ECB England Team Sponsor BOSS Clothing ECB England Team Sponsor Buxton Water Supplier ECB England Team Sponsor Red Bull Non-Alcoholic Drinks ECB England Team Sponsor Hewitt Human resources ECB England Team Sponsor/Supplier adidas Sports ECB England Team Sponsor/Supplier Go Goodwins TransportEquipment/Clothing ECB England Team Sponsor/Supplier Maximuscle Sports nutrition ECB England Team Sponsor/Supplier Volkswagen Automotive ECB England Team Sponsor/Supplier Veuve Cliquot Alcohol ECB England Team Sponsor Marston's Alcohol ECB England Team Grassroots/Recreational ASDA Retail ECB England Team Grassroots / Recreational Sky Sports Broadcasting

20 Table 1.4. Board of Control for Cricket in India Sponsors Rights Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Value Duration Holder Category BCCI Indian Team Major Sponsor Air Sahara Air Travel $70m 2005-2009 BCCI Indian Team Kit Sponsor Nike Sports $43m 2006-2010 Equipment/Clothing Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Value Duration Category BCCI IPL Title Sponsor DLF Building Property 200 crore 2008-2012 BCCI IPL Official Partner Hero Honda Automotive BCCI IPL Official Partner Citi Financial Services BCCI IPL Official Partner Vodafone Telecommunications BCCI IPL Official Partner Kingfisher Airlines Air Travel 1 crore = 10 million rupees. 200 crore = approx $50m

Table 1.5. New Zealand Cricket Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category New Zealand Cricket International Team Major Sponsor Dheeraj and East Property New Zealand Cricket International Team Sponsor/Supplier SamsungCoast LLC (DEC) Consumer Electronics New Zealand Cricket International Team Sponsor/Supplier Solid Energy Energy New Zealand Cricket International Team Sponsor MILO/Nestle Non-Alcoholic Drinks New Zealand Cricket International Team Sponsor Gillette Shaving New Zealand Cricket International Team Sponsor Air New Zealand Air Travel New Zealand Cricket International Team Sponsor RadioNetwork Radio New Zealand Cricket International Team Sponsor Sileni Estates Alcohol New Zealand Cricket National Bank Series Major Sponsor National Bank Financial Services New Zealand Cricket State Championship Major Sponsor State Insurance Insurance New Zealand Cricket State Shield Major Sponsor State Insurance Insurance New Zealand Cricket State Twenty20 Major Sponsor State Insurance Insurance

21 Table 1.6. Pakistan Cricket Board Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Value Duration Category Pakistan Cricket Board International Team Major Sponsor Pepsi Cola Non-Alcoholic Drinks International Pakistan Cricket Board International Team Major Sponsor RBS Financial Services Pakistan Cricket Board International Team Sponsor American Financial Services Express Pakistan Cricket Board International Team Sponsor Aquafina Non-Alcoholic Drinks Pakistan Cricket Board International Team Sponsor Mobilink Telecommunications Pakistan Cricket Board International Team Sponsor Nimbus Sports Marketing Pakistan Cricket Board International Team Sponsor TNTInternational Post Pakistan Cricket Board International Team Sponsor WorldCall Internet Multimedia Pakistan Cricket Board International Team Sponsor Waljis Tour Operator Pakistan Cricket Board Pentangular Cup Title Sponsor RBS Financial Services Pakistan Cricket Board National One-Day Title Sponsor RBS Financial Services Championship Pakistan Cricket Board Quaid-e-Azam Title Sponsor RBS Financial Services Trophy Pakistan Cricket Board 20-20 Championship Title Sponsor RBS Financial Services Pakistan Cricket Board ODI v Australia 2009 Title Sponsor Chapal Construction $1m 2009 Brothers Pakistan Cricket Board ODI v Australia 2009 Sponsor Bank Alfalah Financial Services 2009 Pakistan Cricket Board ODI v Australia 2009 Sponsor Mobilink Telecommunications 2009

22 Table 1.7. Cricket South Africa Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Category Sponsor Industry sector Cricket South Africa Team sponsor Standard Bank Financial Services Cricket South Africa Test Cricket Even Sponsor SA Breweries Alcohol Cricket South Africa Domestic Pro20 Event Sponsor Standard Bank Financial Services Cricket South Africa International Pro20 Event Sponsor Standard Bank Financial Services Cricket South Africa ODI Series Event Sponsor MTN Telecommunications Cricket South Africa Domestic Championship (45-) Event Sponsor MTN Telecommunications Cricket South Africa SuperSport Series Event Sponsor Super Sport Media

Table 1.8. Sri Lanka Cricket Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Category Sponsor Industry sector Sri Lanka Cricket India-Sri Lanka Series (5 ODIs and Major Sponsor Nimbus Sports International Marketing one Twenty20) Sri Lanka Cricket Provincial T/20 Tournament Title Sponsor SLT Telecommunications

23 Table 1.9. West Indies Cricket Board Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Value Duration Category West Indies Cricket International Team, Major Sponsor Digicel Telecommunications $4m p.a 2004-09 Board Test matches, ODIs West Indies Cricket International Team Sponsor Financial Services Board West Indies Cricket International Team Sponsor TCL Group Building Materials Board West Indies Cricket International Team Sponsor Keep Walking Alcohol Board (Johnnie Walker) West Indies Cricket International Major Sponsor Stanford Financial Services Board Twenty20 Financial Group

West Indies Cricket Stanford Twenty20 Major Sponsor Stanford Financial Services Board Financial Group

West Indies Cricket Carib Beer Cup Major Sponsor Carib Brewery Alcohol Board West Indies Cricket High Performance Major Sponsor Sagicor Financial Services $1m 2008-12 Board Centre

24 Table 1.10. Minor Countries Cricket Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Category Sponsor Industry sector Cricket National Team Major Sponsor Scotiabank Financial Services National T20 Championship Title Sponsor Scotiabank Financial Services

Cricket Canada Sponsor Kukri Sports Equipment/Clothing

Cricket Canada Media Partner 252 Media Media Cricket Canada Media Partner ATN Media

Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Category Sponsor Industry Sector Cricket Twenty20 Major Sponsor Metropolitan Bank Financial Services

25 Domestic Cricket Club Sponsorship Deals

Australia

Table 1.11. Australian Twenty20 Team Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category The NSW Speedblitz Blues Twenty20 State Sponsor RTA Road Safety Sponsor XXXX Gold Queensland Bulls Twenty20 State Sponsor XXXX Gold Alcohol Sponsor VB Bushrangers (Victoria) Twenty20 State Sponsor VB Alcohol Sponsor West End Redbacks (South Twenty20 State Sponsor West End Alcohol Australia) Sponsor Retravision Twenty20 State Sponsor Retravision Electrical (Western Australia) Sponsor PKF Tasmanian Tigers Twenty20 State Sponsor PKF Financial Services Sponsor

Table 1.12. Cricket Victoria Sponsors

Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Cricket Victoria Main Sponsor VB Alcohol Cricket Victoria Sponsor Johnnie Walker Alcohol Cricket Victoria Sponsor VicHealth Health Cricket Victoria Sponsor Commonwealth Financial Services Bank Cricket Victoria Sponsor CocaCola Non-Alcholic Drinks Cricket Victoria Sponsor Ford Automotive Cricket Victoria Sponsor Kookaburra Sports Equipment/Clothing Cricket Victoria Sponsor Primary Edge Marketing Group Cricket Victoria Sponsor Mark Sunberg Retail The Good Guys Cricket Victoria Sponsor PKF Financial Services Cricket Victoria Sponsor Match Point Corporate Hospitality Cricket Victoria Sponsor Vecci Business Association

26 Table 1.13. New South Wales Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category New South Wales Sponsor Roads And Traffic Road Safety Authority, New South Wales New South Wales Sponsor VB Alcohol New South Wales Sponsor Sydney Morning Herald Media New South Wales Sponsor Ford Automotive New South Wales Sponsor Pitcher Partners Accountancy New South Wales Sponsor Kookaburra Sports Equipment/Clothing

New South Wales Sponsor CocaCola Non-Alcoholic Drinks New South Wales Sponsor Custom Fleet Financial Services New South Wales Sponsor Classic Sportswear Sports Equipment/Clothing

New South Wales Sponsor Johnnie Walker Alcohol New South Wales Sponsor Toro Commercial Equipment New South Wales Sponsor Brave New World Advertising New South Wales Women's Wolf Blass Alcohol Team Sponsor

Table 1.14. Queensland Sponsors

Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Queensland Major Sponsor XXXX Gold Alcohol Queensland Sponsor Queensland Government Government Queensland Sponsor Konica Printing Minolta Queensland Sponsor Nine Media Queensland Sponsor Suncorp Financial Queensland Sponsor CocaCola Non-alcoholic drinks Queensland Sponsor Wolf Blass Alcohol Queensland Sponsor KFC Food

27 Table 1.15. South Australia Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category South Australia Major Sponsor South Australian Alcohol Brewing Company South Australia Sponsor XXXX Gold Alcohol South Australia Sponsor Powerade Isotonic Sports Drinks South Australia Sponsor Office for Government Recreation and Sport South Australia Sponsor Wolf Blass Alcohol South Australia Sponsor Bank SA Financial Services South Australia Sponsor National Food Food South Australia Sponsor Grant Burge Alcohol Barossa South Australia Sponsor Escape Travel Travel South Australia Sponsor Ford Automotive South Australia Sponsor Keep Walking Alcohol South Australia Sponsor Kookaburra Sports Equipment/Clothing South Australia Sponsor Balfours Food South Australia Sponsor Streets Food

Table 1.16. Tasmania Sponsors Rights Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Holder Category Tasmania Main Sponsor PKF Financial Tasmania Sponsor CocaCola Non-Alcoholic Drinks Tasmania Sponsor Cascade Alcohol Tasmania Sponsor Tasmania Online Internet

28 Table 1.17. Western Australia Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Western Australia Major Sponsor VB Alcohol Western Australia Sponsor Retravision Electrical Western Australia Sponsor Healthway Sun Smart Health

Western Australia Sponsor/Supplier Ford Automotive Western Australia Sponsor Western Power Electricity Western Australia Sponsor Rambal Family Chemicals Western Australia Sponsor CocaCola Non-Alcoholic Drink Western Australia Sponsor The West Australian Media Western Australia Sponsor/Supplier Delaware North Catering Australia Western Australia Sponsor CSBP Fertiliser Western Australia Sponsor/Supplier Kookaburra Sports Equipment/Clothing Western Australia Sponsor/Supplier Sports Equipment/Clothing Western Australia Sponsor Streets Food Western Australia Sponsor/Supplier Cambridge Media Printing Western Australia Sponsor/Supplier AHG Automotive Western Australia Sponsor/Supplier National Foods Food Western Australia Sponsor Sony Foundation Charity Western Australia Sponsor 3 Mobile Telecommunications

Western Australia Sponsor Marketforce Marketing Western Australia Sponsor Fairfax Media Media Western Australia Sponsor Johnnie Walker Alcohol

29 England

Table 1.18. Derbyshire County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Derbyshire Primary Don Amott Caravans Sponsor Derbyshire Primary Marston's Alcohol Derbyshire Primary Printability Printing Derbyshire Primary Derbyshire Sport Sports Development Derbyshire Primary UK Security Services Security Derbyshire Sponsor Balloon and Party Ideas Leisure Derbyshire Sponsor Blue Sky Properties Property Derbyshire Sponsor Buddha Lounge and Bar Leisure Derbyshire Sponsor Cooke and Mason Insurance Derbyshire Sponsor Cruise Clothing and Clothing Accessories Derbyshire Sponsor Days Hotel, Derby Hotels Derbyshire Sponsor DCRS Two-way Radio Derbyshire Sponsor Derbyshire Life Media Derbyshire Sponsor East Vehicle Hire Automotive Derbyshire Sponsor Escape Design and Print Printing Derbyshire Sponsor Flint Bishop Solicitors Legal Derbyshire Sponsor Freeth Cartwright LLP Legal Derbyshire Sponsor Ian Shipton Cars Automotive Derbyshire Sponsor Ian Wilson Carpets Retail Derbyshire Sponsor Jenkinsons Caterers Catering Derbyshire Sponsor Live Cricket Internet Derbyshire Sponsor Matchhotels.com Internet Derbyshire Sponsor Office Care UK Cleaning Derbyshire Sponsor Peak District Online Internet Derbyshire Sponsor Pentagon Vauxhall Automotive Derbyshire Sponsor Radleigh Homes Property Derbyshire Sponsor Soccerstars Soccer Coaching Derbyshire Sponsor Smith Financial Services Derbyshire Sponsor Stratstone Automotive Derbyshire Sponsor Surridge Sport Sports Derbyshire Sponsor UK Transplant Partnership Medical Derbyshire Sponsor Uttoxeter Racecourse Racing

Table 1.19. Durham County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Durham Official Team Northern Rock Financial Services Durham Sponsor/SupplierSponsor Ladbrokes Gambling Durham Sponsor/Supplier Carlsberg Alcohol Durham Sponsor/Supplier SG Petch Automotive Durham Sponsor/Supplier Teeside Audi Automotive

30 Table 1.20. Essex County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Value Duration Holder Category Essex Naming Rights Ford Automotive £1.5m 2005-09 Essex Sponsor Shepherd & Neame Alcohol Essex Sponsor Essex Auto Group Car Dealer Essex Sponsor Testing Solutions Consultancy Essex Sponsor BBC Media Essex Sponsor Cricket Archive Archive Essex Sponsor James Foster Coaching Coaching Essex Sponsor Amlin Insurance Essex Sponsor Perkins Automotive Essex Sponsor Parker Castle Financial Services Essex Sponsor Ashwell Property Group Property

Table 1.21. Glamorgan County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Holder Category Glamorgan Primary Sponsor SA Brain Alcohol Glamorgan Sponsor Paramount Office Interiors Glamorgan Sponsor/Supplier AllPrint Printing Glamorgan Sponsor/Supplier First Plus Financial Services Glamorgan Sponsor/Supplier Pro-Copy Photocopying Glamorgan Sponsor/Supplier Leisure Glamorgan Sponsor/Supplier MRS Wireless Glamorgan Sponsor/Supplier Hypark Leasing VehicleCommunications Glamorgan Sponsor/Supplier Lexus Automotive Glamorgan Sponsor/Supplier Real Radio Media Glamorgan Sponsor/Supplier Solid Designs Internet

Table 1.22. Gloucestershire County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Gloucestershire Primary Sponsor Marston's Alcohol Gloucestershire Primary Sponsor C&G Financial Services Gloucestershire Sponsor Messier-Dowty Ltd Aerospace Gloucestershire Sponsor Thule Automotive Products Gloucestershire Sponsor Mitsubishi Motors Automotive Gloucestershire Sponsor Kiss 101 Radio Gloucestershire Sponsor/Supplier Martin Bennett Photography Gloucestershire Sponsor/Supplier Publicity Matters Marketing Gloucestershire Sponsor/Supplier Western Daily Press Media

31 Table 1.23. Hampshire County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Hampshire Primary Sponsor Powell's Group Interior Design/Shopfitting Hampshire Sponsor Hendy Group Automotive Hampshire Sponsor Taylor Made Computers Hampshire Sponsor Wave Media Hampshire Sponsor -Cola Non-Alcoholic Drinks Hampshire Sponsor Marston's Alcohol Hampshire Sponsor A&A Business Supplies Stationary Hampshire Sponsor Paris, Smith & Randall Legal Hampshire Sponsor Excelsior Transport Hampshire Sponsor Play Up Games Hampshire Sponsor/Supplier Canterbury Sports Hampshire Sponsor/Supplier Cedar Group Printing Hampshire Sponsor Hawks 500 Business Club

Table 1.24. Sponsors Rights Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Holder Category Kent Primary Sponsor Shepherd & Neame Alcohol Kent Sponsor Lexus Automotive Kent Sponsor Barretts Retail Kent Sponsor Kent Police Government Kent Sponsor North Gear Sports Kent Sponsor Invicta FM RadioEquipment/Clothing Kent Sponsor Kent Messenger Media

Table 1.25. Lancashire County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Holder Category Lancashire Primary Sponsor Thwaites Alcohol Lancashire Sponsor/Supplier Kukri Sports Equipment/Clothing Lancashire Sponsor Hill Dickinson Lawyers Legal Lancashire Sponsor Spire Hospital Medical Lancashire Sponsor University of Salford Education Lancashire Sponsor New Balance Clothing Lancashire Sponsor David Roberts Physiotherapy Lancashire Sponsor Chewits Confectionary Lancashire Sponsor Vimto Non-Alcoholic Drinks

Lancashire Sponsor Williams BMW Automotive Lancashire Sponsor Corprotex Clothing Lancashire Sponsor insider Business Magazine Media Lancashire Sponsor AIM Meetings Industry Lancashire Sponsor TNT Post Post Lancashire Sponsor Christie's Charity Lancashire Sponsor Fraser Eagle Transport

32 Table 1.26. Leicestershire County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Leicestershire Sponsor Oval Insurance Leicestershire Sponsor Alliance & Leicester Financial Services Leicestershire Sponsor Surridge Sports Leicestershire Sponsor Yorkshire Bank Financial Services Leicestershire Sponsor Science In Sport Sports Nutrition Leicestershire Sponsor David Lloyd Fitness Leicestershire Sponsor Pro Sport Sports Leicestershire Sponsor Next Clothing Leicestershire Sponsor Highcross Leicester Retail Leicestershire Sponsor Blue Rock Catering Food Leicestershire Sponsor Everards Alcohol

Table 1.27. Middlesex County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Middlesex Primary Northern Rock Financial Services Sponsor Middlesex Sponsor Vauxhall Automotive Middlesex Sponsor Clydesdale Bank Financial Services Middlesex Sponsor Crusader Sport Sports Middlesex Sponsor Fitzgerald and Law (F&L) Accountancy Middlesex Sponsor Ladbrokes Gambling Middlesex Sponsor Airlines Airline Middlesex Sponsor Sandown Park Leisure Middlesex Sponsor Lucozade Non-Alcoholic Drinks Middlesex Sponsor Catlin Financial Services

Table 1.28. Northamptonshire County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Northamptonshire Sponsor Briggs & Forrester Property Management Northamptonshire Sponsor Carlsberg Alcohol Northamptonshire Sponsor Weetabix Food Northamptonshire Sponsor Stanair Construction Materials Northamptonshire Sponsor Cave and Sons Financial Services Northamptonshire Sponsor Waste Recycling Waste Management Group Table 1.29. Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Nottinghamshire Twenty20 Clegg Construction Construction Nottinghamshire CoSponsor Sponsor PKF Accountancy Nottinghamshire Co Sponsor Abacus Lighting Nottinghamshire Sponsor Yorkshire Bank Financial Services Nottinghamshire Supplier Exito Sports Nottinghamshire Supplier Coors Alcohol

33 Table 1.30. Somerset County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Somerset Primary eCar Insurance Insurance Sponsor Somerset Sponsor MJ Baker Food Service Food Somerset Sponsor Blackacre Farm Eggs Food Somerset Sponsor Eurocams Automotive Somerset Sponsor Bradbury Sports Somerset Sponsor Prime Time Recruitment Recruitment Somerset Sponsor Blackthorn Cider Alcohol

34 Table 1.31. Surrey County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Value Duration Holder Category Surrey Team and Brit Insurance Financial Services £450K 2006-10 Oval naming p.a rights Surrey Sponsor Arora International Hotels Surrey Sponsor Marston's Alcohol Surrey Sponsor Airways Airline Surrey Sponsor Surrey Mirro Media Surrey Sponsor Weston Group Property Development Surrey Sponsor Pemberton Greenish Solicitors Surrey Sponsor Jardine Lloyd Insurance Thompson Surrey Sponsor Pinsent Masons Legal Surrey Sponsor Wedlake Bell Legal Surrey Sponsor Connaught Financial Services Surrey Twenty20 Metro Media Surrey Sponsor Pinnacle Community Solutions Surrey Sponsor Cox and kings Travel Surrey Sponsor Cricket Telecom Communications Surrey Sponsor Foxhills Leisure Surrey Sponsor Albion Sports Equipment/Clothing Surrey Sponsor OCS Property Surrey Sponsor Surridge Sports Equipment/Clothing Surrey Sponsor Tote Gambling Surrey Sponsor PA Pics Photography Surrey Sponsor BBC Media Surrey Sponsor MyOffers.co.uk Internet Surrey Sponsor TriNorth Publishing Surrey Sponsor Drivers Jonas Property Consulting Surrey Sponsor Bolt Allen Financial Services Surrey Sponsor Thrifty Vehicle Rental/Leasing Surrey Sponsor Bio Synergy Food Surrey Sponsor Kerry Group Financial Services Surrey Sponsor Easter Property Management Surrey Sponsor Bourne Financial Services

35 Table 1.32. Sussex County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Holder Category Sussex Major Sponsor RDF Computing Sussex Sponsor MKK Sport Sports Equipment/Clothing Sussex Sponsor Alternative Route Finance Financial Services Sussex Sponsor The Argus Media Sussex Sponsor Baker Tilly Accountancy Sussex Sponsor Bakers Bennett Food Sussex Sponsor Clydesdale Bank Financial Services Sussex Sponsor Cricket Telecom Telecommunications Sussex Sponsor DW Electrical Electrical Sussex Sponsor Brighton Sheet Metal Metals Sussex Sponsor Davis Television Services Retail Sussex Sponsor Delta Golf Sports Equipment/Clothing Sussex Sponsor Dragons Health Club Leisure Sussex Sponsor EMCEL Filters Air Filters Sussex Sponsor Focus 4 U Ltd Telecommunications Sussex Sponsor Giles Contracts Shopfitting Sussex Sponsor GMACManagement Financial Services Sussex Sponsor IDentilam plc Software Sussex Sponsor KEW Electrical Retail Sussex Sponsor LanGuardDistributors Alarms Security Sussex Sponsor Mayo Wynne Baxter LLP Legal Sussex Sponsor Mercedes-Benz of Automotive Sussex Sponsor MishonBrighton Mackay Estate Agent Sussex Sponsor Parafix Tapes and Industrial Materials Sussex Sponsor PenfoldConversions Verrall Hire/Haulage Sussex Sponsor PricewaterhouseCoopers Financial Services Sussex Sponsor PSE Associates Surveying Sussex Sponsor Rendezvous Casino Gambling Sussex Sponsor Rivervale Cars Automotive Sussex Sponsor Rok Property Sussex Sponsor Setyres Car Repairs Sussex Sponsor Sidlow Car Repairs Sussex Sponsor Southern FM Media Sussex Sponsor Spofforths Chartered Accountancy Sussex Sponsor Tates Cars Automotive Sussex Sponsor vokins@home Retail Sussex Sponsor Wyndeham Press Group Printing

36 Table 1.33. Yorkshire County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Value Duration Holder Category Yorkshire Naming rights Leeds Met University Academia 2006-16 Yorkshire Primary Sponsor Bradford & Bingley Financial Services £1.6m 2006-08 Yorkshire Sponsor Costcutter Retail Yorkshire Sponsor Aunt Bessie's Food Yorkshire Sponsor Henderson Financial Services Yorkshire Sponsor Canterbury Sports Equip't/Clothing Yorkshire Sponsor Minster Jaguar Automotive Yorkshire Sponsor Simon Falk Opticians Yorkshire Sponsor Seabrook Crisps Food Yorkshire Sponsor Homes Property Yorkshire Sponsor Clothing Yorkshire Sponsor Lightwater Valley Leisure Yorkshire Sponsor Airedale M and T Mechanical/Electrical Yorkshire Sponsor Daniel Footwear Yorkshire Sponsor Multipower Sports Nutrition Yorkshire Sponsor David Lloyd Fitness Yorkshire Sponsor Kick Sports/Leisure Marketing Yorkshire Sponsor Dent Steel Metals

Table 1.34. Warwickshire County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Warwickshire Sponsor Marston's Alcohol Warwickshire Sponsor Puma Sports Equip't/Clothing Warwickshire Sponsor Sk:n Cosmetics Warwickshire Sponsor Gullivers Travel Travel Warwickshire Sponsor Audi Automotive Warwickshire Sponsor Sunrise Senior Living Care Home Warwickshire Sponsor David Lloyd Fitness Warwickshire Sponsor Pinsent Masons Legal Warwickshire Sponsor West Bromwich Building Society Financial Services

Table 1.35. Worcestershire County Cricket Club Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Worcestershire Main Sponsor Apollo Retail Worcestershire Associate Sponsor Marston's Alcohol Worcestershire Sponsor English Mutual Financial Services Worcestershire Sponsor Clydesdale Financial Services Worcestershire Sponsor/Supplier Fearnley Sports Worcestershire Sponsor/Supplier Whitehouse Hotel Gym/Hotel Worcestershire Sponsor Rock Lobster Jewellery Worcestershire Sponsor/Supplier OGL Computer Computers Worcestershire Sponsor/Supplier Pockets Clothing Worcestershire Sponsor King's Worcester Education Worcestershire Sponsor/Supplier Fraser Eagle Transport Worcestershire Sponsor BBC Media Worcestershire Sponsor Publicity Matters Marketing Worcestershire Sponsor/Supplier Edwards Car Centre Automotive Worcestershire Sponsors Rabjohns Auditing Worcestershire Sponsor Worcester News Media

37 India

Table 1.36. India Team Franchisees And Budgets Rights Holder League Owner Industry Sector Team Budget IPL Mukesh Ambani (Reliance) Conglomorate $111.9m

Royal IPL Vijay Mallya (chairman of Alcohol/Aviation $111.6m Challengers United Breweries and Bangalore Kingfisher Airlines) Hyderabad IPL Deccan Chronicle (plus Media $107m Deccan Chargers Group M has 20 % stake)

Chennai Super IPL Indian Cements (N Construction $91m Kings Srinivasan) Delhi Daredevils IPL GMR Group (Grandhi Energy / $84m Mallikarjuna Rao) Infrastructure Kings XI Punjab IPL (actress), Ness Various $76m Wadia (Bombay Dyeing), Mohit Burman (Dabur), (Apeejay Surendera Group) Kolkata Knight IPL Red Chillies Entertainment Cinema $75m Riders (Shahrukh Khan, Juhi Chawla Mehta, Jai Mehta) IPL Emerging Media (R Jha, Media $67m Lachlan Murdoch, Suresh Chellaram)

Table 1.37. Bangalore Royal Challengers Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Bangalore Royal IPL Major Sponsor Royal Challenge Alcohol Challengers Bangalore Royal IPL Sponsor Wrigley FMCG Challengers

38 Table 1.38. Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Chennai IPL Sponsor Coromandel IT Super Kings Infotech Chennai IPL Sponsor India Cements Construction Super Kings Chennai IPL Sponsor Aircel Telecommun - Super Kings ications Chennai IPL Sponsor Reebok Sports Equipment / Super Kings Clothing Chennai IPL Sponsor Peter England Clothing Super Kings Chennai IPL Super Kings Sponsor Wrigley FMCG

Table 1.39 Delhi Daredevils Sponsors. Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Delhi IPL Main Sponsor Hero Honda Motorcycling Daredevils Delhi IPL Associate Kingfisher Alcohol Daredevils Sponsor Delhi IPL Associate Religare Stockbroking Daredevils Sponsor Delhi IPL Uniform Sponsor Adidas Sports Equipment / Daredevils Clothing Delhi IPL Brand Akshay Kumar Bollywood Daredevils Ambassador Delhi IPL Daredevils Sponsor Wrigley FMCG

39 Table 1.40 Hyderabad Deccan Chargers Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Hyderabad IPL Sponsor Orbit Food Deccan Chargers Hyderabad IPL Sponsor Puma Sports Equipment / Deccan Clothing Chargers Hyderabad IPL Sponsor Big 92.7 Media Deccan Chargers Hyderabad IPL Sponsor Kingfisher Alcohol Deccan Chargers Hyderabad IPL Sponsor Odyssey Retail Deccan Chargers Hyderabad IPL Sponsor Limca Non-Alcoholic Drinks Deccan Chargers Hyderabad IPL Media Partner Deccan Media Deccan Chronicle Chargers Hyderabad IPL Sponsor UB Group Alcohol Deccan Chargers Hyderabad IPL Sponsor Rachnoutsav Entertainment Deccan Events Chargers Hyderabad IPL Deccan Chargers Sponsor Wrigley FMCG

Table 1.41. Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Kolkata Knight Riders IPL Title Sponsor Nokia Telecommunications Kolkata Knight Riders IPL Sponsor Sprite Non-Alcoholic Drinks Kolkata Knight Riders IPL Sponsor Belmonte Clothing Kolkata Knight Riders IPL Sponsor Reebok Sports Equipment/Clothing Kolkata Knight Riders IPL Sponsor Tag Heuer Watches Kolkata Knight Riders IPL Sponsor Star Plus Media Kolkata Knight Riders IPL Sponsor Gitaniali Jewellery Kolkata Knight Riders IPL Sponsor Planet m Retail Kolkata Knight Riders IPL Sponsor Wrigley FMCG

40 Table 1.42. Kings XI Punjab Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Kings XI IPL Title Sponsor Telecommun - Punjab ications Kings XI IPL Sponsor Kotak Financial Services XI IPL Sponsor Coca-Cola Non-Alcoholic Drinks Punjab Kings XI IPL Sponsor Bombay Dyeing Textiles Punjab Kings XI IPL Sponsor Provogue Clothing Punjab Kings XI IPL Sponsor Foster's Alcohol Punjab Kings XI IPL Punjab Sponsor Wrigley FMCG

Table 1.43. Mumbai Indians Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Mumbai IPL Founding MasterCard Financial Services Indians Sponsor Mumbai IPL Official Partner Adidas Sports Equipment / Indians Clothing Mumbai IPL Sponsor Reliance Business Indians Industries Mumbai IPL Official Partner Kingfisher Alcohol Indians Mumbai IPL Official Partner Royal Stag Alcohol Indians Mumbai IPL Indians Sponsor Wrigley FMCG

Table 1.44. Rajastan Royals Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Rajasthan Royals IPL Primary Sponsor UltraTech Construction Materials Rajasthan Royals IPL Major Sponsor Boost Energy Drink Rajasthan Royals IPL Associate Kingfisher Alcohol Sponsor Rajasthan Royals IPL Kit Reebok Sports Clothing / Sponsor/Supplier Equipment Rajasthan Royals IPL Technology Tata Consultancy IT Partner Services Rajasthan Royals IPL Sponsor Wrigley FMCG

41 South Africa

Table 1.45. South African Domestic Team Sponsors Rights Holder Property Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Chevrolet Pro20/SuperSport/ Sponsor General Motors Automotive Warriors Domestic Nashua Pro20/SuperSport/ Sponsor Nashua Printing Domestic Nashua Cape Pro20/SuperSport/ Sponsor Nashua Printing Cobras Domestic Gestetner Pro20/SuperSport/ Sponsor Gestetner Printing Diamond Eagles Domestic

bizhub Highveld Pro20/SuperSport/ Sponsor Konica Minolta Printing Lions Domestic South Africa Nashua Pro20/SuperSport/ Sponsor Nashua Printing Domestic

New Zealand

Table 1.46. New Zealand Domestic Team Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Canterbury Wizards Major Sponsor State Insurance Insurance Central Stags Major Sponsor State Insurance Insurance Aces Major Sponsor State Insurance Insurance Auckland Aces Sponsor Accor Hospitality Hospitality Auckland Aces Sponsor Admission Marketing Services Auckland Aces Sponsor Canterbury Sports Clothing/Equipment Auckland Aces Sponsor Cricket Express Retail Auckland Aces Sponsor Cruise Company Cruises Auckland Aces Sponsor Health & Sports Health Clubs Auckland Aces Media Partner The New Zealand Herald Media Auckland Aces Sponsor Orix Financial Services Auckland Aces Media Partner Radio Network Media Auckland Aces Sponsor Staples Rodway Accountancy Auckland Aces Sponsor Subway Restaurants Auckland Aces Sponsor Tip Top Food Auckland Aces Media Partner Tarana Media Northern Major Sponsor State Insurance Insurance Northern Knights Sponsor Green Acres Household Services Northern Knights Sponsor Mapei Construction Materials Northern Knights Sponsor Canterbury Sports Clothing/Equipment Northern Knights Sponsor Novotel Hotels Northern Knights Sponsor ABN AMRO-Craigs Financial Services Northern Knights Media Partner Waikato Times Media Northern Knights Sponsor The Bank Restaurant Otago Volts Major Sponsor State Insurance Insurance Wellington Firebirds Major Sponsor State Insurance Insurance

42 Pakistan

Table 1.47. Pakistan Domestic Team Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Title Sponsor Habib Bank Limited Financial Services Khan Research Laboratories Title Sponsor Khan Research Laboratories Nuclear Technology National Bank of Pakistan Title Sponsor National Bank of Pakistan Financial Services Pakistan Customs Title Sponsor Pakistan Customs Government Pakistan International Airlines Title Sponsor Pakistan International Airlines Airlines Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited Title Sponsor Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited Energy Sui Southern Gas Corporation Title Sponsor Sui Southern Gas Corporation Energy Water and Power Development Authority Title Sponsor Water and Power Development Authority Energy Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited Title Sponsor Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited Financial Services Zebras No Sponsor Wolves Team Sponsor Interloop Clothing Abbottabad Rhinos No Sponsor No Sponsor Eagles No Sponsor No Sponsor Bears No Sponsor Sialkot Stallions Team Sponsor Ufone Telecommunications Panthers No Sponsor Leopards No Sponsor Hyderbad Hawks No Sponsor Tigers No Sponsor Rams No Sponsor

43 West Indies

Table 1.48. West Indies Domestic Team Sponsors Rights Holder Sponsorship Sponsor Industry Sector Category Jamaica Sponsor Kingston Wharves Ltd Port Operator Jamaica Sponsor SportsMax Media Jamaica Sponsor Red Stripe Alcohol Jamaica Sponsor Klas Radio Jamaica Sponsor Pick3 Gambling Jamaica Media Partner The Jamaica Observer Media Jamaica Sponsor Scotiabank Financial Services Jamaica Sponsor Irie FM Radio Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Unit Trust Corporation Financial Services Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Trinidad Cement Ltd Construction Materials Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Western Scientific Co Medical Equipment Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Carillion Civil Engineering Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Mittal Steel Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Angostura Alcohol Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Neal & Massy Automotive Dealer Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor RBTT Bank Financial Services Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Newsday Media Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Hilton Hotels Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Dilmah Non-alcoholic Drinks Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Luxsam Industries Consumer Electronics Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor DFL Group Financial Services Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Sport & Games Ltd Retail Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Toyota Automotive Trinidad & Tobago Sponsor Vega Capital Financial Services Management Sponsor Sagicor General Financial Services Barbados Sponsor Goddard Enterprises Conglomorate Barbados Sponsor Caribbean Alliance Insurance

44 Cricket Sponsorship Analysis

Global Cricket Sponsorship Chart 1.1 shows sponsorship by industry sector in the world‟s major cricketing nations. The findings are based on the number of reported deals rather than actual deal value. Financial services is the biggest sector by deal number, with every major cricket playing nation having significant sponsorship investment from banks, insurance companies and/or building societies.

Chart 1.1. Global Cricket Sponsorship Deals By Industry Sector

Telecommun- Non-Alcoholic Sports ications Drinks Equipment/ Food 3% 3% Clothing 3% 5% Other 41% Automotive 6%

Alcohol Financial 10% Services Media 16% 13%

The 2008/09 economic downturn, triggered based primarily on the crisis in the banking industry, is likely to lead to a reduction in sponsorship from the sector. Quite simply regardless of whether banks can demonstrate a sound business case for sponsorship, media and shareholder pressure is being exerted to cease such expenditure. A good case in point is RBS which, in 2008, was thought to spend around $300 million per year on its sports sponsorship portfolio, which in cricket includes the NatWest Trophy in England and several events in Pakistan. By Spring 2009 the company had sold the majority of its shares to the British Government in return for a cash injection. It announced that it would reduce its sponsorship spend by 25% in 2009 and by 50% by 2010. It also announced that it was back the highly emotive hospitality spend by 90%. Although other such financial service companies are not under the same degree of pressure, it is unlikely that they will

45 continue to invest in sport at the same levels and certainly overall sponsorship growth from this sector is a remote possibility in the near future.

Media deals account for the second largest sector although in most cases these are media partnerships rather than straightforward sponsorships. As such, the actual cash consideration is often negligible.

Alcohol takes third place and these are particularly prevalent in Australia, India and among the English County clubs.

What is perhaps of concern to cricket is the relatively low number of deals from new industries, such as telecommunications, IT and new media, especially at club level. Many of the larger properties have major mobile telecommunications deals such as Reliance with the ICC, 3G / Cricket Australia (CA), Vodafone (ending in 2009) / ECB and Digicel / West Indies Cricket Board (WICB). Such sponsors offer a more modern brand image and have the additional benefit of facilitating communication to fans.

Twenty20 Cricket Sponsorship For cricket to develop a more youthful image to go with the exciting new formats of Twenty20 cricket, the sport arguably needs to attract more such sponsors.

Chart 1.2 Twenty20 Cricket Sponsors By Industry Sector

Air Travel Property / 4% Energy Construction Sports Equip't Financial 4% 9% Services / Clothing 26% 4%

Telecoms 4%

Other 23% FMCG Alcohol 9% 17%

Chart 1.2 presents an analysis of those sponsors specifically involved with Twenty20, and includes tournaments and dedicated Twenty20 teams. The results show that sponsorship profile is very similar to that of cricket overall. Indeed it could be argued

46 that the lack of media partnerships presents an even older industry profile to the sponsorship mix.

Australian Cricket Sponsorship Sponsorship of is dominated by alcohol with big beer brands such as XXXX, Fosters and Victoria Bitter (VB) in particular using the game to promote products. The attractiveness of the sport for such companies is obvious. Cricket is a relaxing, time consuming sport, which takes place usually in hot, sunny weather. The demographic profile of the fans is predominantly young to middle-aged men. It therefore presents the ideal conditions for beer consumption and attracts the key target market. For rights holders the deals are financially rewarding offering a mix of sponsorship and pouring rights income.

Chart 1.3 Australian Cricket Sponsorship Deals By Industry Sector

Sports Media Equipment/ Automotive 4% Clothing 7% Other 7% Non-alcoholic 35% Drink 8%

Food Alcohol Financial 9% 21% Services 9%

Alcohol sponsorship does, however, bring with it some issues for the rights holder. There is a growing lobby putting pressure on the alcohol industry‟s marketing. The argument is that alcohol can be both physically harmful and can lead to anti-social behaviour, especially among younger drinkers.

In most countries there are restrictions regarding the marketing of alcohol, especially in relation to children. As such any rights holder wanting to promotions or grass events with a primary sponsor in the alcohol sector would find opportunities restricted. A sponsor from the media or telecommunications sector, on the other hand, would be ideal in terms of both creating a modern, acceptable image and the practical issues of communication.

47 English Cricket Sponsorship

English cricket is more dependent than most on the financial services sector and with the 2009 announcement that Vodafone will not renew its team sponsorship deal with the ECB, the English game faces serious challenges to retain commercial income.

Chart 1.4. English Cricket Sponsorship Deals By Industry Sector

Leisure Food Clothing 3% 3% 2% Travel 3% Legal Retail 3% 3% Other Property 33% 4% Media 6%

Alcohol Financial Sports 6% Equipment/ Services Automotive Clothing 19% 9% 6%

Given that English cricket‟s second biggest sponsorship investor (by number of deals), the automotive industry, is arguably the second most affected sector in the credit crisis, the picture looks bleak for commercial income from sponsorship in England. It is, however, arguable that this also presents an opportunity. As with most rights holders, there is a growing maturity in the attitude to marketing among the clubs. English County cricket clubs have begun to present themselves more professionally as can be seen by the Yorkshire CCC case study in this report.

The sponsorship data presented in the report does, however, show that the majority of clubs have a large number of sponsors/partners. This is not necessarily a positive outcome. A large number of sponsors paying small amounts creates sponsorship clutter and makes it more difficult for the high paying primary sponsors to leverage their rights.

A more mature approach is to work with fewer sponsors who will invest more in their sponsorship activation and work in conjunction with the clubs to run programmes with mutual benefits. Cricket in general still has a long way to go in this regard and leaving

48 major sponsors to take the initiative will not up the process. There is no shortage of sponsorship properties in sport and the arts chasing commercial income and those rights holders with the most professional approach will see disproportionately greater benefits.

Indian Cricket Sponsorship Big money sponsorship deals in Indian cricket are relatively recent and are based on the increasing maturity of the country‟s marketing industry and the fast growth in spending power among consumers.

To an extent those factors helped to bring about the IPL and the country‟s big sponsorship deals have gone to the event and the clubs involved.

Chart 1.5. Indian Cricket Sponsorship Deals By Industry Sector

Clothing Financial Non-Alcoholic FMCG 5% Services Drinks 13% 6% 5%

Telecoms 6%

Other Media 33% 8% Sports Equipment/ Alcohol Clothing 14% 10%

Alcohol is, surprisingly, the largest category by deal frequency. India was 150th among 184 countries based on per-capita consumption in the World Health Organisation's Global Status Report on Alcohol 2004. It is estimated that only 15% to 20% of the population drink alcohol in the predominantly Hindu country. Hinduism does not proscribe alcohol as such, but it is certainly less socially important than in western countries.

India has seen a significant growth in alcohol consumption, especially among the young, since the 1990s, partly through greater disposable incomes and partly through the wider availability and marketing of brands. Vijay Mallya, franchise owner of Royal Challengers Bangalore and chairman of United Breweries, has seen the

49 potential to promote alcohol brands through cricket sponsorship, and the company‟s Kingfisher beer has sponsorship deals with many of the franchises.

Aside from alcohol, the sponsorship industry sector mix is not dependent on specific business categories and shows a fairly modern profile with media, fashion (clothing and sports equipment/clothing) and telecommunications well represented.

Although the sponsorship industry in India lags those of western countries, it is maturing quickly as major international sponsorship agencies set up camp and global brands seek access to the vast consumer market. The likelihood is that rights fees will continue to rise as a reflection of the increased value sponsorship offers those domestic brands that develop their activation programmes and global brands seeking entry to the market.

50 2. CRICKET ATTENDANCE

Interest in cricket around the world is measured mainly through live spectator attendance and television viewing figures. Attitudinal research data is, of course, also a useful measure, especially when trying to the potential for a sport, but the proof of the pudding is in the eating and those who watch the game are its lifeblood.

It is arguable that live attendance is the best barometer of the state of the game. Television viewing can be skewed by rights packages being taken by channels with inherently greater or lesser viewers. In the case of many of the current series, the subscription television offerings have drastically cut the potential TV audiences in return for higher fees being paid to the rights holders.

The measure of popularity is therefore best judged by those who will make a concerted effort and investment to buy tickets and travel to a match.

As can be seen in the analysis of Twenty20 business models in the report, it was concern regarding attendances that really prompted the cricket world into creating a new format.

Cricket World Cup

Table 2.1. Cricket World Cup Attendance 1975-2007 Rights Event Season Matches Total Average Host holder ICC Cricket World Cup 1975 15 158,000 10,533 England ICC Cricket World Cup 1979 15 132,000 8,800 England ICC Cricket World Cup 1983 27 232,081 8,596 England ICC Cricket World Cup 1987 27 N/A N/A Pakistan ICC Cricket World Cup 1992 39 N/A N/A Aus - New Zealand ICC Cricket World Cup 1996 37 N/A N/A India - Sri Lanka ICC Cricket World Cup 1999 42 N/A N/A England ICC Cricket World Cup 2003 52 626,845 12,055 South Africa ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 51 672,000 13,176 West Indies

Attendance figures for the Cricket World Cup are incomplete with the figures for 1987 to 1999 not made available by the ICC. The overall picture, however, is one of modest growth with good average crowds in 2003 and 2007. The 2007 event was heavily criticised for low crowd levels at the start of the series with commentators

51 pointing out that ticket prices were too high for the local population. Many of the new stadia were also built some distance from population centres and there were security restrictions on such items as outside food, signs, replica kits and musical instruments, despite Caribbean cricketing customs. As the series progressed, however, the restrictions were eased and attendance grew.

The live audience at a Cricket World Cup is influenced by where the event is held. In India, for example, the passion for cricket is high among a population of more than one billion. Cricket in the West Indies on the other hand, has to draw crowds from a total population of around five million for the cricket playing nations. Different countries also have different sized stadia so setting a benchmark for an event on live attendance criteria is pointless for the Cricket World Cup. As such the overall spectator attendance figures for the competition offer little direct insight into the popularity of either the event globally or cricket in general.

To understand the trends in cricket interest globally, it is far more instructive to consider the data among the major cricket playing nations. Unlike football, for example, cricket attendance data is difficult to collect in may countries and is rarely published. Many of the governing bodies fail to either keep or disseminate the data, so records are patchy. The one exception in this regard is the ECB which readily supplies full attendance data for all series. There is, however, sufficient data available to a broad picture of attendance across the main cricket playing nations.

Australia Australian cricket crowds have traditionally been some of the largest in the world partly as a of stadium capacities being larger than any other cricket playing nation. The Cricket Ground (MCG), for example, has a capacity of 100,000, 44,000, () 42,000, the 33,500 and the WACA () 20,000.

Such capacities mean that spectator attendance for cricket can vary significantly depending on the level of interest in a series or individual match. The vast can be full to capacity for an Ashes match, but half full (or less) for other test series.

52 Chart 2.1. Total Attendance - Australian Test Match Cricket 1997-2008

900,000 800,000 700,000 600,000 500,000 400,000 300,000 200,000 100,000

0

1990-91 1991-92 1992-93 1993-94 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07

In 2006/07, for example, 813,000 watched Test series against England and 426,000 attended the ODIs. The total attendance of 1,239,000 is an all-time record for international fixtures in Australia, and only the second time the total has exceeded one million, the first being in 1982/83. It should, however, be noted that ODIs were not part of the list in the before the 1970s.

Chart 2.2. Test v Ashes Test Average Attendance – Australia 1998-2007

180,000 160,000 140,000 120,000 100,000 80,000 60,000 40,000 20,000

0

1998-99

1999-00

2000-01

2001-02

2002-03

2003-04

2004-05

2005-06 2006-07

Test Average Ashes Average

53 Chart 2.3. Total Attendance – Australia ODIs 1990-2007

500,000 450,000 400,000 350,000 300,000 250,000 200,000 150,000 100,000 50,000

0

1990-91 1991-92 1992-93 1993-94 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07

The 2006/07 Test figures surpassed the surge in interest of the mid-1970s, which peaked at 777,000 in six Tests in 1974/75. This interest was quickly dampened by Kerry Packer‟s breakaway World Series, which lured many of the top players away from test cricket.

The 2007 Tests total is not, however, a record. It falls short of the Bradman era seasons of 1946/47 (847,000) and 1936/37 (949,000). In terms of intensity of public interest (in a much smaller population), that era will remain Australian cricket‟s highpoint. The 2006/07 series did surpass all seasons in terms of daily average crowds. Tests were longer in the 1930s and 1940, so the 1936/37 record was spread over 26 days, as opposed to 22 for the 2006/07 season. The 2006/07 daily average of 37,000 just beats the 36,500 for 1936/37, and is a new all-time high.

This in spite of the fact that the three-day Melbourne lost two days of potentially lucrative cricket. It is reported that Cricket Australia lost more money through the loss of the fourth day of the Melbourne Test than it made in the whole Perth Test.

Comparing totals over four-year Ashes cycles, the period between 2003 to 2007 has been the best-attended in Australian cricket history, with 2.33 million coming to the Tests, surpassing the 2.21 million from 1973/74 to 1976/77, although the daily averages over the four years were higher in the 1970s.

The picture with ODIs is less encouraging. In spite of the Ashes surge of interest, 2006/07 season‟s crowds only ranks 12th since 1980. This was in spite of the 78,000

54 crowd at the MCG in the first match of the series. For the first time since ODIs were introduced in 1979/80, average daily crowds for ODIs (30,400) were lower than for Tests (37,000).

Longer-term trends are very much in Tests favour. Total ODI crowds were more than 50% higher than Tests for much of the 1980s. Tests made a gradual comeback in the 1990s, catching up by the turn of the , and now the positions are reversed, with Tests soaring more than 50% above ODI crowds between 2003 and 2007.

The underlying trend for Tests has been relentlessly upward since 1990, while ODIs have generally been falling since 1999. The figures are always skewed somewhat when England tour to Australia although both South Africa and India also tend to draw large crowds.

Domestic Twenty20 Cricket came to Australia in 2005/06 with the KFC Big Bash in 2005. On the whole matches draw average crowds of around 10,000, but the format has generally attracted larger crowds since its inception.

Table 2.2. KFC Big Bash Attendance 2005-2009 Season Venue Final Average Total Attendance Attendance Attendance 2005-06 5,669 9,833 68,829 2006-07 Melbourne Cricket Ground 28,960 N/A N/A 2007-08 WACA, Perth 16,589 N/A N/A 2008-09 ANZ Stadium, Sydney 17,592 10,391 176,644 This is especially the case where the Victorian Bushrangers, from Victoria, Australia‟s most fervent cricketing state, have success. The 2006/07 series was won by the Bushrangers with the final being played at their home, the MCG. As can be seen from Table 2.2, this led to the biggest final attendance to date.

55 England

Table 2.3. English Cricket Attendance Summary – All Series 1997-2008

1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 Change 07/08 npower Test Series 441,758 404,284 232,791 388,136 546,450 365,553 437,105 513,014 513,895 562,995 563,124 535,575 -4.9% NatWest Challenge 63,390 51,457 62,477 NatWest Series 57,158 49,081 555,832 136,972 167,005 190,751 129,718 145,625 102,852 189,113 203,957 184,914 -9.3% Total ODI 57,158 49,081 555,832 136,972 167,005 190,751 193,108 197,082 165,329 189,113 203,957 184,914 -9.3% International Twenty20 14,097 35,294 42,349 16,817 -60.3% Total International 498,916 453,365 788,623 525,108 713,455 556,304 630,213 710,096 693,321 787,402 809,430 737,306 -8.9%

B&H/Twenty20 119,454 110,305 32,169 83,710 110,270 105,489 257,759 287,726 476,174 500,441 436,336 593,717 36.1% C & G/ Friends Provident Trophy 92,973 73,698 84,494 71,734 64,772 60,811 67,729 58,809 68,750 177,956 171,829 159,084 -7.4% NUL/Totesport/Pro40 420,971 420,074 413,693 390,368 355,506 358,667 410,536 352,945 349,064 196,127 186,405 194,439 4.3% County Championship 573,705 525,997 544,132 479,946 481,547 505,202 530,938 448,703 469,697 488,569 428,327 558,950 30.5% Total Domestic 1,207,103 1,130,074 1,074,488 1,025,758 1,012,095 1,030,169 1,266,962 1,148,183 1,363,685 1,363,093 1,222,897 1,506,190 23.2%

TOTAL 1,706,019 1,583,439 1,863,111 1,550,866 1,725,550 1,586,473 1,897,175 1,858,279 2,057,006 2,150,495 2,032,327 2,243,496 10.4%

** Only 1/4 Finals, Semi Finals, and Final were calculated into this total in 1999.

Natwest Series did not occur in 1999. N.B. this figure is for the World Cup '99.

56 Charts 2.4 to 2.13 show that English cricket attendance is currently on the rise having suffered dips from the mid 1990s to 2003.

Chart 2.4. Total Attendance – English Cricket 1997-2008

2500

2000

1500

1000 Thousands 500

0 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 1706 1583 1863 1551 1726 1586 1897 1858 2057 2150 2032 2243

International matches have seen a gradual growth since the mid 1990s. The spike in 1999 is a result of England hosting the Cricket World Cup and in 2001 is the result of both an Ashes test series and two matches against Pakistan.

Chart 2.5. Total Attendance – English International Cricket 1997-2008

1000

800

600

400 Thousands 200

0 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 498.9 453.4 788.6 525.1 713.5 556.3 630.2 710.1 693.3 787.4 809.4 737.3

The need for Twenty20 was largely prompted by the figures presented in Chart 2.6. It shows that domestic attendances in the late 1990s were falling from a low base. The introduction of the Twenty20 Cup added 250,000 spectators in 2003 and by

57 2008, this had increased to 600,000. This didn‟t prevent other domestic formats from losing fans. If Twenty20 were taken out of the equation, the overall figure for 2008 would be approximately 100,000 down on 2002.

Chart 2.6. Total Attendance – English Domestic Cricket 1997-2008

1600 1400 1200 1000 800

600 Thousands 400 200 0 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 1207 1130 1074 1026 1012 1030 1267 1148 1364 1363 1223 1506

As can be seen in chart 2.7, Test cricket in England remains popular with peaks occurring in the Ashes series of 2001 and 2005 when , not a big crowd draw, were the only other international team, to tour.

Chart 2.7. Total Attendance - English Test Match Cricket 1997-2008

600

500

400

300

Thousands 200

100

0 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 442 404 233 388 546 366 437 513 514 563 563 536

2006 benefited from the „feelgood‟ factor following the and 2007 a total of seven tests played against India (3 matches) and the West Indies (4 matches),

58 both big attractions as a result of large ex-patriot communities and the nations‟ strong cricketing heritage.

Chart 2.8. Total Attendance - English One Day Internationals 1997-2008

600

500

400

300

Thousands 200

100

0 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 57.16 49.08 555.8 137 167 190.8 193.1 197.1 165.3 189.1 204 184.9

One Day Internationals (ODIs) in England have seen considerable attendance growth since the late 1990s (the exception, in 1999, is the Cricket World Cup hosted in England). This is, however, largely down to the number of matches played. In 1998, for example, there were four matches in a triangular tournament between England, Sri Lanka and South Africa. In 2008, England hosted ten matches; five each against New Zealnd and South Africa.

59 Chart 2.9. Total Attendance - English International Twenty20 1997-2008

50

40

30

20 Thousands 10

0 2005 2006 2007 2008 14.097 35.294 42.349 16.817

International Twenty20 matches tend to have consistent crowd sizes depending on the venue. In 2008, England played one match against both New Zealand and South Africa (which was abandoned through bad weather without a ball being played), hence the low overall crowd.

2007 saw two matches at , England‟s biggest ground, against the West Indies. The Oval has traditionally attracted a large ex-pat Caribbean crowd and this in turn creates an atmosphere that helps to draw home fans.

Chart 2.10. Total Attendance - English County Championship 1997-2008

700 600 500 400 300

Thousands 200 100 0 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 574 526 544 480 482 505 531 449 470 489 428 559

60 The low crowds for English County Championship matches are the biggest worry for cricket administrators in England. With 144 matches in the two divisions, the average attendance per match is just 3,881 spectators, less than 1,000 per day for the four-day format. The advent of Twenty20 at county level does seem to have reversed the falling trend as fans get more interested in the clubs having used Twenty20 as perhaps a first visit. The crowd numbers remain below those if 1997 and there is a general sense that decisions need to be made about the future of the four-day game.

Cricket commentators tend to argue for retention, even if the format is changed. This is because the four-day games help to develop players to test match standard, something that very difficult to achieve through .

Chart 2.11. Total Attendance – C&G / Friends Provident Trophy 1997-2008

200

150

100 Thousands 50

0 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 93 74 84 72 65 61 68 59 69 178 172 159

Attendance at Friends Provident Trophy matches has grown largely as a result in the change in format of the competition. Until 2006, 32 teams, including the minor counties, took part in a straightforward knockout tournament featuring 31 matches.

The format was changed in 2006 to 18 first class counties plus and playing a two league system in which each team played one match against every other team in the league. The winners of each league then played a final to decide the overall trophy winner. In 2008, the format was altered to have four leagues of five teams with winners progressing to quarter, then semi-finals before a final match. The consequence

61 for the counties is larger aggregate crowds, but slightly smaller averages since 2006. The change of format from two leagues to four leagues in 2008 has reduced the number of matches, but with a slightly higher average.

Overall the changes have boosted attendance at county grounds because matches are guaranteed, whereas the knockout format would leave a large number of counties out of the tournament after just one match. The downside is that after four or five matches, it becomes clear that some counties have no chance of progressing to the quarter-finals and home attendances fall. This is, however, a better position than the 10 in a league format, where it became clear much earlier which counties were serious contenders.

A further problem with the increased number of matches is the additional fixture list congestion in first class cricket.

Chart 2.12. Total Attendance – English Twenty20 Cup 2003 - 2008

700 600 500 400 300

Thousands 200 100 0 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 258 288 476 500 436 594

Chart 2.12 shows that without doubt, the Twenty20 Cup has attracted a very big following, nearly four times that of the Friends Provident Trophy. Given that there are fewer matches in the tournament the average gate is much higher at just above 6,000 spectators. Indeed some matches, between bigger counties have attracted crowds of over 10,000 and it is at this level that the commercial value of the format has become very valuable to the counties.

62 Chart 2.13. Total Attendance - English NUL/Totesport/Pro40 1997-2008

198 196 194 192 190 188

Thousands 186 184 182 180 2006 2007 2008 196 186 194

The Pro40 league is the English Sunday fixture for 40 over matches. The league has been run in various guises since 1969 when the John Player League was formed. In recent years attendance levels for the league have remained stable despite the introduction of Twenty20.

India

The Indian Premier League

Table 2.4. Indian Premier League Attendance 2008 Rights holder Event Season Teams Games Total Average IPL Twenty20 2008 8 59 3,422,000 58,000

Table 2.4 demonstrates the enormous popularity of the Indian Premier League, with an average of 58,000 spectators per match. This is the world‟s second highest domestic sporting attendance average after the National Football League (NFL) in the U.S, which typically attracts crowds in excess of 67,000.

Although crowd numbers for the 2009 series held in South Africa are likely to be down considerably, the 2008 statistics show the revenue potential for this form of Twenty20 aside from the lucrative TV rights income.

63 South Africa

Chart 2.14. Standard Bank Pro20 Series Attendance 2004-07

165000

160000

155000

150000

145000

140000

135000 2004 2005 2006 2007

Chart 2.14 demonstrates that South Africa‟s Twenty20 series, sponsored by Stand Bank, has a consistent following (see case study Section xxx) with only minor fluctions between seasons.

Table 2.5. Standard Bank Pro20 Series - Attendance By Match 2004 Match Venue Attendance Cumulative Number Total 1 Sahara Park, Newlands 10,100 10,100 2 SuperSport Park 7,425 17,525 3 Sahara Stadium, Kingsmead 5,500 23,025 4 Sahara Oval, St Georges Park 5,250 28,275 5 GoodYear Park 6,500 34,775 6 Park RAIN 34,775 7 Wanderers 18,221 52,996 8 Mercedes Benz Park 5,624 58,620 9 SuperSport Park 12,000 70,620 10 Sahara Park, Newlands 6,017 76,637 11 Sahara Stadium, Kingsmead 6,297 82,934 12 Sahara Stadium, Kingsmead 12,426 95,360 13 Sedgars Park, Potch 6,232 101,592 14 GoodYear Park 7,637 109,229 15 SuperSport Park 13,333 122,562 16 Sahara Park, Newlands 13,124 135,686 17 SuperSport Park 9,100 144,786 18 Mercedes Benz Park 9,113 153,899

64 Table 2.6. Standard Bank Pro20 Series - Attendance By Match 2005 Match Venue Attendance Cumulative Number Total 1 GoodYear Park 6,000 6,000 2 Sahara Oval, St George's Park 0 6,000 3 The Wanderers 12,311 18,311 4 Sahara Park - Newlands 5,500 23,811 5 SuperSport Park, Centurion 8,300 32,111 6 Sahara Stadium, Kingsmead 5,578 37,689 7 Mercedes-Benz Park 6,200 43,889 8 Goodyear Park 8,325 52,214 9 Sedgars Park 6,859 59,073 10 Willowmore Park - Benoni 6,525 65,598 11 Sahara Oval, St George's Park 4,948 70,546 12 Sahara Stadium, Kingsmead 8,977 79,523 13 The Wanderers 15,004 94,527 14 Sahara Park - Newlands 8,500 103,027 15 Goodyear Park 8,732 111,759 16 Sahara Oval, St George's Park 11,300 123,059 17 SuperSport Park, Centurion 10,550 133,609 18 SuperSport Park, Centurion 17,700 151,309

Table 2.7. Standard Bank Pro20 Series - Attendance By Match 2006 Match Venue Attendance Cumulative Number Total 1 Sahara Stadium, Kingsmead 6,905 6,905 2 Sahara Park, Newlands 10,662 17,567 3 Liberty Life 18,483 36,050 4 Goodyear Park 4,100 40,150 5 6,675 46,825 6 Sahara Oval, St George's Park 8,881 55,706 7 SuperSport Park 11,500 67,206 8 Sahara Park, Newlands 11,800 79,006 9 Goodyear Park 7,000 86,006 10 SuperSport Park 11,447 97,453 11 Sahara Stadium, Kingsmead 2,000 99,453 12 Sahara Stadium, Kingsmead 11,555 111,008 13 Mercedes-Benz Park, EL 6,800 117,808 14 , 7,500 125,308 15 Sedgars Park, Potch 8,400 133,708 16 Goodyear Park 4,500 138,208 17 SuperSport Park 8,500 146,708

65 Table 2.8. Standard Bank Pro20 Series - Attendance By Match 2007 Match Venue Attendance Cumulative Number Total 1 Goodyear Park 7,336 7,336 2 rained out 7,336 3 Liberty Life Wanderers Stadium 11,859 19,195 4 Sahara Park, Newlands 8,132 27,327 5 SuperSport Park 11,754 39,081 6 Sahara Stadium, Kingsmead 7,700 46,781 7 Sahara Oval, St George's Park 7,707 54,488 8 3,848 58,336 9 Sedgars Park 4,194 62,530 10 Sahara Park, Newlands 8,156 70,686 11 Sahara Stadium, Kingsmead 10,682 81,368 12 Liberty Life Wanderers Stadium 20,359 101,727 13 Goodyear Park 4,479 106,206 14 Buffalo Park 2,784 108,990 15 Willowmoore Park 4,980 113,970 16 Sahara Park, Newlands 8,723 122,693 17 Liberty Life Wanderers Stadium 16,830 139,523 18 Liberty Life Wanderers Stadium 22,849 162,372 Crowds tend to fluctuate mostly according to venue. The Liberty Life Wanderers Stadium in Johannesberg, for example, tends to record the highest crowds being in the country‟s largest city and having the biggest capacity.

66 3. CRICKET TV RIGHTS

Television rights deals for cricket have seen huge increases in recent years and have, to an extent, allowed the sport to punch above its weight in some countries.

The Sky /Channel Five deal for English international cricket between 2010-3, for example, is worth £300 million, whereas the equivalent deals for English international football, running from 2008/09 to 2011/12, are worth a combined £425 million. Although football has secured £125 million more for its equivalent rights, the sport is without doubt more popular than cricket. It draws significantly higher spectator attendance, has a much higher media profile and public declared interest runs at 50% in the UK as opposed to 30% for cricket (Driving Business Through Sport, IMR Ltd).

Rights fees in India, however, are a true reflection of the country‟s obsession with cricket and interest levels in the country are far higher than for any other sport. The $1.6 billion ten-year deal between the IPL and Sony/World Sport Group is a clear indication of the growth of spending power in the country and could actually look to be very good value for the broadcaster in years to come. That said, year two of the contract, with the IPL temporarily moving to South Africa, was hardly a welcome development for Sony.

International deals have also raised eyebrows with ESPN paying more than $1 billion for ICC limited overs international events and a similar amount to a variety of rights holders for the Twenty20 Champions League. As with India, the deals are very long for sports television rights and in such cases it always potentially the rights holder exposed. Should TV rights values continue to climb in the manner evident since the early 1990s, the rights holders might regret making such a commitment. However, there is also a case for creating long-term partnerships with broadcasters, especially when events are staged quadrennially. It allows more planning to be put in place by all parties to market events and it is more appealing to sponsors who are more likely to commit to longer contracts because they are reassured about the broadcast arrangements.

Arguably the biggest danger to the future of cricket is the trend to opt for the highest broadcast bids, which usually results in pay-television operators taking live rights. For

67 the broadcasters it is a useful tool to drive and retain subscriptions, but for cricket it means that some of the most prestigious events cannot be seen by a large section of the audience. Cricket rights holders would argue that the extra income is used to help develop cricket at all levels and to an extent this is true. The reality is that when broadcast income flows into a sport, it is the players who tend to benefit the most. Again, the rights holders‟ argument is that if they don‟t offer the players the high rewards available, someone else will and breakaway series, devised by broadcasters would soon be launched.

Cricket, as any sport, therefore has to find the right balance between rewarding the star players, developing interest in the sport and serving those who already have an interest.

68 International

Table 3.1.. Cricket Broadcast Rights – International Events Rights Holder Event Rights Broadcast Region Broadcaster Fee Duration ICC World Cup Broadcast Global Syndication ESPN-Star $1-1.1bn 2007 - ICC Champions Rights 2015 Trophy ICC World Twenty20

ESPN-Star Sports ICC Events Broadcast Australia and Nine 2008-2011 ESPN-Star Sports ICC Events Broadcast Canada ATN 2008-2011 ESPN-Star Sports ICC Events Broadcast Caribbean CMC 2008-2011 ESPN-Star Sports ICC Events Broadcast India ESPN-Star Sports 2008-2011 ESPN-Star Sports ICC Events Broadcast / North Arab Digital 2008-2011 Africa Distribution (ADD) ESPN-Star Sports ICC Events Broadcast New Zealand Sky NZ 2008-2011 ESPN-Star Sports ICC Events Broadcast Pakistan Pakistan Television 2008-2011 Network ESPN-Star Sports ICC Events Broadcast South Africa Supersport 2008-2011 ESPN-Star Sports ICC Events Broadcast Sri Lanka SLRC 2008-2011 ESPN-Star Sports ICC Events Broadcast UK Sky Sports 2008-2011 ESPN-Star Sports WorldTwenty20 Broadcast UK BBC 2009 Highlights ESPN-Star Sports ICC Events Broadcast US DirecTV 2008-2011

Table 3.2.. Cricket Broadcast Rights – Twenty20 Champions League Rights Holder Event Rights Broadcast Region Broadcaster Fee Duration BCCI, ECB, CA, Twenty20 Broadcast Global Syndication ESPN-Star Sports $1 billion 2009-2018 CSA, PCB Champions Rights League

69 Australia

Table 3.3. Cricket Broadcast Rights - Australia Rights Event Rights Broadcast Broadcaster Fee Duration Holder Region Cricket International and Broadcast Rights Australia Fox Sports Australia Domestic Australian Cricket Cricket Australian International Exclusive broadcast Asia ESPN-Star 2009-2013 Australia and Domestic cricket rights - television, internet, mobile and radio. Various Australia internationals TV Broadcast Australia Fox Sports $15m 2009 - in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, 2012 West Indies and Zimbabwe, Sixes.

70 England

Table 3.4. Cricket Broadcast Rights - England Rights Event Rights Broadcast Broadcaster Fee Duration Holder Region ECB England Test matches, ODIs, International TV Broadcast UK Sky Sports £220m 2006-2009 , plus all domestic cricket, including the county championshop, Twenty20 tournaments and one-day cricket ECB England Test matches, ODIs, International TV Broadcast UK Channel 5 2006-2009 Twenty20s, (Highlights)

ECB England Test matches, ODIs, International TV Broadcast UK Sky Sports £300m 2010-2013 Twenty20s, plus all domestic cricket, including the including C5 county championshop, Twenty20 tournaments and deal (below) one-day cricket ECB England Test matches, ODIs, International TV Broadcast UK Channel 5 2010-2013 Twenty20s (Highlights)

ECB England Test matches, ODIs, International Radio UK / BBC Radio 2006-2009 Twenty20s, all domestic cricket tournaments Broadcast International ECB England Test matches, ODIs, International Radio UK / BBC Radio 2010-2013 Twenty20s, all domestic cricket tournaments Broadcast International ECB England Test matches, ODIs, International TV Broadcast Asia ESPNStar until 2012 Twenty20s, plus all domestic cricket, including the Sports county championshop, Twenty20 tournaments and one-day cricket ECB Five Glamorgan matches to be shown in Welsh TV Broadcast Wales S4C 2010-2013 language

71 India

Table 3.5. Cricket Broadcast Rights - India Rights Event Rights Broadcast Region Broadcaster Fee Duration Holder BCCI IPL Global and Indian India/Worldwide Sony/World Sport Group $1.6bn 2008-2017 TV Broadcast BCCI IPL Free-to-air Australia Network 10 (Aus) AuD 10- 2008-2013 Broadcast 15m BCCI IPL TV Broadcast New Zealand Sky Network BCCI IPL TV Broadcast UK and Ireland Setanta Sports 2008-2013 BCCI IPL TV Broadcast , , , Arab Digital Distribution's ART 2008-2017 Iraq, Jordan, , Lebanon, , Prime Sport channel Qatar, Palestine, , Syria, , Algeria, , Tunisia, Egypt, Sudan, Libya and Nigeria BCCI IPL TV, Radio, Internet USA DIRECTV (TV) Willow TV 2008-2013 (Internet) BCCI IPL TV Broadcast South Africa / Nigeria SuperSport BCCI IPL TV Broadcast Pakistan BCCI IPL TV Broadcast Canada 's 2008-2013 (subscription) / CBN & ATN Cricket Plus Radio channels, XM Radio's ATN- Asian Radio BCCI IPL IPL internet rights Live Current Media Inc $50m 2008-2017 BCCI India TV Broadcast India Doordarshan Internationals BCCI India TV Broadcast India Neo Sports Internationals

72 Table 3.5b. Cricket Broadcast Rights - India Rights Holder Event Rights Broadcast Region Broadcaster Zee Telefilms ICL Live Hindi India Zee Sports broadcasts Zee Telefilms ICL Live English India, Middle East, Pakistan Ten Sports Language broadcasts Zee Telefilms ICL Broadcast TV Bangladesh BTV & ATN Bangla Zee Telefilms ICL Broadcast Rights North Africa Gateway Zee Telefilms ICL Broadcast Rights Telkom-Malysia & Astro Zee Telefilms ICL Broadcast Rights Australia Fox Sports Zee Telefilms ICL Broadcast Rights UK Zee Music Zee Telefilms ICL Broadcast Rights Africa Zee TV Zee Telefilms ICL Broadcast Rights USA Zee Sports Zee Telefilms ICL Broadcast Rights Caribbean Caribbean Media Corporation Zee Telefilms ICL Internet www.bollywood.tv, www.glutv.com, www.mypopkorn.com & www.watchindiatv.com.

New Zealand

Table 3.6. Cricket Broadcast Rights – New Zealand Rights Holder Event Rights Broadcast Region Broadcaster Cricket New New Zealand TV Broadcast New Zealand Sky Sports Zealand International and Domestic Cricket Cricket New New Zealand TV Broadcast - New Zealand Prime Television Zealand International and Highlights and Domestic Cricket Selected Live Games

73 Pakistan

Table3.7. Cricket Broadcast Rights – Pakistan Rights Holder Event Rights Broadcast Region Broadcaster Fee Duration Pakistan Cricket Pakistan TV Broadcast Pakistan Ten Sports/Taj $145m 2009-2013 Board International and Television Domestic Cricket Pakistan Cricket Pakistan Radio Broadcast Pakistan FM 107 Private Limited Board International and Domestic Cricket Pakistan Cricket Pakistan Official Audio Pakistan Conexture Private Board International and Streaming Rights Limited Domestic Cricket for Internet and Mobile Phones Pakistan Cricket Pakistan Wireless Mobile Pakistan EchoStar Global Board International and Telephony Right Domestic Cricket Holder *Ten Sports receives $39m waiver following cancellation of India tour in 2009

Sri Lanka

Table 3.8. Cricket Broadcast Rights – Sri Lanka Rights Holder Event Rights Broadcast Region Broadcaster Fee Duration Sri Lanka Cricket Various home Broadcast Sri Lanka Ten Sports $65m 2009-2113 international and domestic Sri Lanka Cricket ODI Series v Broadcast Sri Lanka Nimbus Sport India January and International February 2009

74 South Africa

Table 3.9. Cricket Broadcast Rights – South Africa Rights Holder Event Rights Broadcast Region Broadcaster Cricket South Africa Home TV Broadcast South Africa Supersport / international SABC matches (Tests and ODIs) Cricket South Africa Standard Bank TV Broadcast South Africa Supersport Tournament Cricket South Africa MTN Domestic TV Broadcast South Africa Supersport Championship BCCI IPL TV Broadcast South Africa Supersport

West Indies

Table 3.10. Cricket Broadcast Rights – West Indies Rights Holder Event Rights Broadcast Region Broadcaster Fee Duration West Indies CB Home Broadcast Caribbean Caribbean Media $2.5m 2005-2009 international / Corporation domestic matches

West Indies CB West Indies home Broadcast Global syndication Ten Sports (Taj) $60m 2008-2012 international rights (except UK & matches Ireland

West Indies CB West Indies home Broadcast UK & Ireland Sky Sports $20m 2008-2012 international matches

75 United States

Table 3.11. Cricket Broadcast Rights – USA Rights Holder Event Rights Broadcast Region Broadcaster ICC ICC Tournaments Television, radio, USA DIRECTV (TV) broadband and Willow TV (Internet) Internet BCCI, ECB, CA, Champions Television, radio, USA DIRECTV (TV) CSA & PCB League Twenty20 broadband and Willow TV (Internet) Internet Cricket Australia Australian Television, radio, USA DIRECTV (TV) Domestic Cricket broadband and Willow TV (Internet) Internet Cricket South Africa South African Television, radio, USA DIRECTV (TV) Domestic Cricket broadband and Willow TV (Internet) Internet Cricket New Zealand New Zealand Television, radio, USA DIRECTV (TV) Domestic Cricket broadband and Willow TV (Internet) Internet

76 4. TWENTY20 – THE HISTORY

Although Twenty20 cricket was first played in England in 2003, dwindling attendances for county cricket games had prompted a study into the possibility of introducing a short- form game back in 1998.

The unbending opposition of the 18 first-class counties and the MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club), who were fearful of compromising the game‟s integrity, put paid to the idea at the time. But the problem of cricket‟s unpopularity could not be willed away, and three years later, the fall in attendances had reached crisis point.

The ECB marketing director back in 2002, Stuart Robertson, was the man charged with finding a solution. “I started to look at attendance figures and it was clear that domestic crowds were in terminal decline,” said Robertson, now commercial director at the Rose Bowl. “Over a five-year period the exact figure was 17 per cent at all forms of county cricket in the run up to 2000. Something urgently had to be done.”

Robertson favoured introducing a shortened form, but he decided that the ECB could not take such a bold step until exhaustive market research had been carried out.

“The key difference from the previous attempts at a short-form game was our consumer- focused approach, which we generated through our lengthy research programme,” said Robertson.

Robertson persuaded the domestic broadcaster, Channel 4, to allow the ECB to use £250,000 of its marketing money to fund a three-phase campaign of research into why attendances were falling.

Phase one was a big desk audit: The ECB created a snapshot of cricket‟s audience by examining all available data about the types of people who went to games, or read about cricket, or watched it on television. A crucial element in this first phase was considering which social groups were underrepresented. They turned out to be just about everyone

77 who wasn‟t a middle-aged middle-class white male – in other words, women, children, 16-34-year-olds, families, ethnic minorities and inner city communities.

Phase two was a qualitative phase of research, involving more than 30 focus groups across the country. The groups included those who were missing from cricket‟s traditional demographic. Participants were all asked for their insights and the ECB picked some „nuggets‟ to test quantitatively in phase three.

A programme of 4,500 15-minute interviews in people‟s homes established that the biggest barriers to cricket were around the issue of accessibility, which manifested itself in a number of ways.

“Duration was a major factor in making the game inaccessible to lots of people,” said Robertson. “Many interviewees complained that midweek four-day games, with their seven-hour-long days, were too big a barrier, as most people are at work or school. Even one-day cricket was deemed by many to be too long, especially young people.”

The feeling of inaccessibility, or exclusivity, was exacerbated by the complex fixture lists. “People didn‟t know when it was on. You needed a maths degree to understand the fixture list,” said Robertson. “There was no regular appointment to view as there usually is in football. People want to know that, for example, that Friday night is Pro40 night.”

Another much-repeated criticism was that there were social barriers to entry into cricket clubs. “People worried about having to become members before they could attend games, or felt the atmosphere was too snooty for them, with members wearing shirt and , although these ideas were more directed at some of the southern counties, and not so much at Yorkshire and Lancashire.”

A short-form seemed to resolve many of the issues of accessibility, so the respondents at the quantitative stage were asked what they felt about the idea. “We put it to them that: „if we played a game of cricket lasting less than three hours, after school or after work, which had music attached, and had colourful clothing, and lots of razzmatazz and glitz, would you come?‟ A lot said yes,” said Robertson.

78 The case for a short-form game was compelling. “If we go back to marketing basics, what we did was actually a fantastic marketing case study, with lots of product differentiation and market segmentation,” said Robertson. “The research provided lots of evidence that you don‟t have to have one homogenous game of cricket with the same audience for each format.”

The ECB gave the green light and began a furious lobbying campaign to get the major stakeholders on board, especially the print media, broadcasters and players. The compelling research also persuaded most of the counties to back the concept and it was voted in by 11 votes to seven, with the MCC abstaining, in April 2002. “The rest is history,” said Robertson.

While some of the chief executives at the more traditional counties, perhaps protective of their interests with the members who had voted for them, were still reluctant partners, all 18 county marketing managers indicated to Robertson that they were backing the short- form and began enthusiastically promoting the new Twenty20 Cup.

Meanwhile, the ECB paid £250,000 for a marketing campaign to create excitement across the country. “There was a huge amount of preparation before the first ball was . We looked at brand development and planned carefully all our entertainment initiatives,” said Robertson.

Initially, the sideshows at the games threatened to overshadow the cricket: there were fairground rides, bouncy castles, barbecue zones, speed dating, jacuzzis, live pop bands and sofas on the outfields. Players sat in dugouts next to the to bring them closer to the crowds, and gave live analysis to commentators when Sky televised the games. Music was a critical part of the package, with snatches of Queen‟s Another One Bites The Dust greeting dismissed batsmen.

Luckily, the cricket in the first year matched the razzmatazz. The sun shone and the games were played in a competitive spirit, with the teams inspired by the large crowds and excitement levels. Fifteen matches were sell-outs and the total attendance soared from under 67,000 for the previous year‟s Benson and Cup to 257,759. Since then it has continued to grow in popularity, and in 2008 had its greatest aggregate

79 attendance so far, of 593,717, though more matches were played than the previous year (see Table 2.12).

Robertson‟s revolution spread quickly around the world. It proved a hit with crowds in all major cricket-playing nations. A Twenty20 World Cup in September 2007 easily outshone its one-day counterpart. And India‟s win helped to fuel the success of the most important tournament to date, the cash-rich Indian Premier League. All these developments will be considered in the report.

The Indian Premier League And Indian Cricket League

The Indian Premier League (IPL) has had a tumultuous effect on cricket, but it had a low-key birth with a chat over a cup of at Wimbledon, in July 2007, between Andrew Wildblood, a senior vice-president at IMG, and , the vice-president of the BCCI.

The pair shared a desire to re-energise Indian domestic cricket and tap into the country‟s insatiable demand for the sport. The country‟s booming economy and rapidly growing middle-class disposable income made it an appropriate moment to introduce a new form of entertainment.

At this stage, Modi‟s ideas were sketchy, but he knew that he wanted his league to be based on US-style franchises, with team owners benefiting from broadcasting and sponsorship deals. Modi asked Wildblood and IMG to use their worldwide experience of sports marketing to flesh out his ideas.

Wildblood threw himself into the project with a passion and only a month after the Wimbledon meeting, IMG had already produced an outline of the IPL‟s basic structure: Eight city teams would play Twenty20 games home and away, with 59 matches over 44 days taking place almost exclusively during prime-time television hours.

Modi was so impressed with IMG‟s work that he basically handed over the running of the entire tournament, knowing that the equivalent marketing experience and expertise would be harder to find in an Indian company.

80

IMG‟s Michael Fordham said: “We were involved from the kick-off with Modi and we really ended up creating the whole event. We clarified the concept and created the sporting model; then we made all the necessary financial steps and put together the media rights tender.

“We also sold all the franchises and managed all the sponsorship deals; we even managed all the player auctions, and continue to do so, and provide event management for all the IPL teams.”

The concept received a further timely boost in September 2007 when India won the inaugural Twenty20 Cup, adding glamour to both the Indian players and the Twenty20 concept.

The IMG Formula For Success In a case study of its development of the IPL, IMG described its formula for generating excitement around the concept:

“Franchise bids were targeted to India‟s most prominent executives, Bollywood celebrities, and wealthy elite. The winning bids determined the locations for eight inaugural IPL teams.

“IMG consulted with Christie‟s and Sotheby‟s to develop a player auction format. The one-day event enabled franchisees to bid on the best players from India and around the world.

“News of celebrity team owners and the player auction generated considerable media attention for the IPL. It created tremendous buzz around the country and across the cricket-playing world. IMG tapped into its global expertise to construct a franchise-based blueprint for the IPL, similar to the sports leagues in and .”

The extract makes clear the novelty of a tournament such as the IPL. India, where sports‟ marketing is in its infancy, had never seen such blatant commercialism in the

81 sporting arena. Even before it started, the IPL was making headlines because of the huge amounts of cash paid for franchises and players.

Some critics found the testosterone-fuelled bidding dramas tasteless, but they were undeniably dramatic. Playing records and personalities were analysed endlessly in the cricket-obsessed media and the mind-boggling sums exchanging hands were unprecedented in cricket. Former Australian cricketer said his IPL contract had made him far more money than he had earned previously in his entire career. But Hyderabad‟s bid of $700,000 for Gilchrist wasn‟t even the highest sum paid: Chennai forked out $1.5 million for the Indian pin-up boy Mahendra Singh Dhoni. This sum was later surpassed for the second IPL, when both and fetched $1.55 million.

Aside from the cash dramas, IMG‟s masterplan also put an emphasis on spectacle and showbusiness, which was where the cult Bollywood stars came in. Their attendance at games was widely reported in the media and helped attract and broaden the appeal to female audiences.

In fact, the Indian media played an invaluable role in hyping all aspects of the tournament. Newspapers, TV news channels and radio stations were completely obsessed by the IPL. Media analysts calculated that it took up around half of the media‟s time and space. It was described as „the reality television‟.

But the razzmatazz was not the only reason for the IPL‟s success in its first year. The quality of the cricket had to live up to all the hype. And, most of the time, it did, spectacularly.

“The main reason the IPL has been successful is not because of money, but because it‟s a cricket tournament which matters,” said IMG‟s Michael Fordham. “The players really care. I was at the final on June 1 last year and you could see how much it meant to . He said it was one of the highlights of his career.”

Warne‟s later comments about the IPL confirm Fordham‟s view: “In 20 years of playing … I haven‟t experienced anything like what I experienced in India last year. It was truly

82 unbelievable,” he said. “The Ashes [in] 2005 comes pretty close to the intensity of the crowd, and the passion and the news, but we were getting [more than] 110,000 at , there was 25,000 outside the ground for the final, plus 90,000 in the stadium.” Warne has since urged authorities to impose an annual two-month freeze on international cricket in deference to the IPL.

The IPL’s Financial Results IMG‟s financial model ensured massive income for the IPL, which Michael Fordham claims will help it to weather the recession.

The Franchisee fees will collectively generate $724.6 million over 10 years. In addition to that, DLF Building India purchased the title sponsorship rights to the league for $50m over five years. Other important IMG deals were done with Kingfisher Airlines, which became the IPL partner, and Honda, Citi Financial, and Vodafone, who were all awarded partner sponsorship status. The associate sponsorships were collectively purchased for almost $120 million over five years.

Of all IMG‟s deals, by far the most important was with broadcaster Sony (SET) and the Singapore-based World Sports Group. They bagged the broadcasting rights for 10 years for $1.026 billion. Of this, $108 million had to be spent on marketing the game over 10 years, which brought down the actual cost to $918 million. SET must pay $316 million in equal installments over the first five years and $608 million over the following five.

Though both WSG and Sony were coy about sharing the broadcast revenue figures for the first IPL, experts estimate that Sony collected more than Rs 350 crore ($70 million) from on-air advertising and sponsorships. The advertising sales from 59 IPL matches look impressive when compared to the Rs 400 crore ($80 million) Sony made from 72 international matches spanning the ICC Champions Trophy 2006 and the ICC World Cup 2007.

Sony also equalled the record for highest spot rate by charging Rs 10 lakh ($20,000) for 10-second spots during the IPL final from last-minute advertisers. ESPN Star Sports got this rate for the final of the Twenty20 World Cup in September 2008. Before IPL started, Sony sold ad spots at about Rs 2 lakh to bulk buyers, but, within a fortnight, it had raised

83 the rates to Rs 3.5-4 lakh. The equity research firm Alchemy forecast a profit of Rs 934 crore ($186 million) over the 10-year contract period for SET.

Franchisees The IPL franchise owners recovered, from central television and sponsorship revenues, close to 80 per cent of the money they paid to the BCCI in the first year of the Twenty20 league, according to figures tabled at the BCCI‟s annual general meeting.

In total, the franchise owners handed over Rs 289 crore ($58 million) to the board as the first installment on their rights to own an IPL team. But as part of the revenue-sharing formula they earned back Rs 224 crore from the central earnings of the first IPL.

The eight franchises shelled out sums ranging from $67 million to $111.9 million to own teams for a ten-year period, and the league plans to have three more teams from 2011. The team owners are entitled to 80 per cent of the television rights revenue, which amounted to Rs 236 crore ($47 million) in the first year, minus production costs, and 60 per cent of the sponsorship revenues, which netted Rs 117 crore ($23 million) in the first year.

The payment to the BCCI, however, was only part of the spending by the franchises, who spent considerable amounts on players and promotions.

However, Modi said there were other significant streams of revenue.

“The franchisees, apart from getting revenue from central sponsors, also earn revenue from team sponsorship directly, which is from $7-10m annually,” he said. “Furthermore, ticketing and hospitality brings in around $3-6m. These numbers are likely to go up.

84 Table 4.1. IPL Team Revenue / Cost Analysis 2008 Team Revenues $USm Expenses $USm Profit / Loss ($USm) Bangalore Royal Broadcast Rights 70 Franchise Fees 96 Challengers Sponsorship 0 Team Costs 44 Gate Receipts 20 Promotion/Admin 36 Total 90 Total 1760 -86 Chennai Super Broadcast Rights 70 Franchise Fees 72 Kings Sponsorship 50 Team Costs 48 Gate Receipts 25.6 Promotion/Admin 26 Total 145.6 Total 146 -0.4 Delhi Daredevils Broadcast Rights 70 Franchise Fees 68 Sponsorship 40 Team Costs 46 Gate Receipts 30.8 Promotion/Admin 40 Total 140.8 Total 154 -13.2 Hyderabad Deccan Broadcast Rights 70 Franchise Fees 90 Chargers Sponsorship 34 Team Costs 48 Gate Receipts 24 Promotion/Admin 26 Total 128 Total 164 -36 Kolkata Knight Broadcast Rights 70 Franchise Fees 62 Riders Sponsorship 68 Team Costs 50 Gate Receipts 40 Promotion/Admin 40 Total 178 Total 152 26 Kings XI Punjab Broadcast Rights 70 Franchise Fees 60.8 Sponsorship 44 Team Costs 50 Gate Receipts 18 Promotion/Admin 26 Total 132 Total 136.8 -4.8 Mumbai Indians Broadcast Rights 70 Franchise Fees 90 Sponsorship 40 Team Costs 40 Gate Receipts 28 Promotion/Admin 40 Total 138 Total 170 -32 Rajastan Royals Broadcast Rights 70 Franchise Fees 54 Sponsorship 32 Team Costs 26 Gate Receipts 16 Promotion/Admin 26 Total 118 Total 106 12 Figures based on exchange rate: 1 INR = US$0.02

Further, they will all get a share of revenue for them being part of the Champions Twenty20 League. All of this could add quite substantially to all their bottom lines.”

The IPL has also provided a cash bonanza for the state associations of the BCCI, which received an additional Rs 203 crore ($40 million) in 2008 – 70 per cent of the fees paid by the franchises to the BCCI. This payment was in addition to their share from BCCI‟s

85 television rights revenue, which totalled Rs 372 crore ( $74 million) in the financial year 2007-08.

The IPL declared a gross income of Rs 645 crore ($129 million) in its inaugural year and a profit of Rs 51 crore ($10 million) after handing over the dues to the franchises and the state associations.

Sponsor Reaction Sponsors were generally delighted with the value for money their investments provided. “We invested in IPL for eyeballs and we got the bang for our buck,” Harit Nagpal, marketing director of Vodafone Essar, told the Wall Street Journal. “Events such as IPL bring about concentration of eyeballs, which are usually fragmented.”

Team owners were also happy, irrespective of their team‟s performance. Vijay Rekhi, president of United Spirits, was not bothered about his Bangalore Royal Challengers‟ second-last finish, despite being the second-most expensive franchise in IPL ($111.6 million, just below the $111.9 million paid by Reliance Industries for the Mumbai franchise). “We wanted a brand splash and we‟ve achieved that,” he told the Wall Street Journal.

However, Balu Nayar, former head of IMG India, who helped design the IPL event, said that merchandising and corporate hospitality did not get enough attention. “There were fairly cursory attempts at brand building, but that‟s largely due to paucity of time,” he said.

Away from India, broadcasters were delighted with the IPL product. In the UK, Sports channel Setanta boasted viewing figures for the daily matches topping 120,000 for weekend games and rarely drifting below 70,000 for mid-morning games. This was a good return given that Setanta is a relatively small channel and the IPL a new product.

James Matheson, PR for Setanta, said: “Last year, Setanta already had a big hit with the IPL. This year, the participation of Kevin Pietersen and Freddie Flintoff should increase interest. We anticipate a significant increase in subscriptions as a result. The deal was a gamble for us, but one we are now sure will pay off.”

86 Television Audiences Media analysts said the IPL viewing was unprecedented for as can be seen in Table 4.1. Television Audience Measurement (TAM) pegged the aggregate viewing between April 19 and May 24 at 102.6 million. It averaged the television ratings (TVRs, 1 TVR = 1% of the population) delivered by the IPL at 4.8, outstripping all other genres of viewing for the duration of the tournament (18 April-1 June). The IPL viewing figures were far higher other major international sporting events, such as the Wimbledon final and the British Grand Prix.

Chart 4.1. TV Ratings – Indian v International Sports Events (2008)

9 8

7

6 5 4 3 2 1 0 IPL Semi IPL Final 1 Euro Cup Cricket Wimbledon British GP

Final 30 June Final 22 Final 6 6 July

May June Final 6 July July

Source: Economic Times July 2008 Given that cricket is India‟s and that the other featured sports in the chart are based in Europe, it is no surprise that the IPL came out on top with an average TVR of 7.8 (peak 10.06) for the final. What is of note is the degree to which the other sporting events are put in the shade with Wimbledon, the British Grand Prix and the Finals of UEFA Euro 2008 each receiving less than half a TV rating, whereas the IPL final received nearly eight points.

A TV rating of above four in India is considered significant. Research from TAM shows that TV ratings for the week preceding the IPL failed to break through the four point barrier.

87 Table 4.2. Indian TV Ratings Preceding IPL 2008 Channel Date Day Start Time Programme TVR Star Plus 09-Apr-08 Wed 9:01 PM BIDAYI 3.91 Star Plus 10-Apr-08 Thu 9:02 PM BIDAYI 3.78 Star Plus 10-Apr-08 Thu 10:32 PM KYUNKI SAAS BHI KABHI BA 3.78 Star Plus 08-Apr-08 Tue 8:59 PM BIDAYI 3.77 Star Plus 08-Apr-08 Tue 10:29 PM KYUNKI SAAS BHI KABHI BA 3.74 Star Plus 07-Apr-08 Mon 8:58 PM BIDAYI 3.71 Zee TV 07-Apr-08 Mon 7:59 PM BANOO MAIN TERI DULHAAN 3.55 Star Plus 07-Apr-08 Mon 10:28 PM KYUNKI SAAS BHI KABHI BA 3.54 Zee TV 07-Apr-08 Mon 9:30 PM SAATH PHERE 3.41 Zee TV 09-Apr-08 Wed 9:30 PM SAATH PHERE 3.31 Source: Television Audience Measurement (TAM)

The table series 4.3, however, shows that not only did the IPL deliver TVR averages above four points, but also the series completely dominated the top ratings positions throughout its duration.

Table 4.3. Indian TV Ratings – IPL 2008 Weeks 1&2 Channel Date Day Start Time Programme TVR MAX 18-Apr-08 Fri 9:41 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/RCB-BG 7.27 MAX 18-Apr-08 Fri 7:56 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/RCB-BG 7.11 MAX 18-Apr-08 Fri 9:30 PM L/T IPL EXTRA IN T20 MID ANAL 5.66 MAX 19-Apr-08 Sat 10:11 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 RR/DD-DL 5.48 MAX 19-Apr-08 Sat 6:45 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/KP-MO 5.11 MAX 19-Apr-08 Sat 8:23 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 RR/DD-DL 4.64 MAX 19-Apr-08 Sat 4:57 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/KP-MO 3.97 Star Plus 14-Apr-08 Mon 10:35 PM KYUNKI SAAS BHI KABHI BA 3.78 Star Plus 15-Apr-08 Tue 10:31 PM KYUNKI SAAS BHI KABHI BA 3.74 Zee TV 15-Apr-08 Tue 9:30 PM SAATH PHERE 3.65

Channel Date Day Start Time Programme TVR MAX 20-Apr-08 Sun 7:30 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DC/KKR-KO 6.57 MAX 24-Apr-08 Thu 9:40 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DC/RR-HY 6.25 MAX 23-Apr-08 Wed 10:02 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/MI-CH 5.95 MAX 20-Apr-08 Sun 9:55 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 MI/RCB-MU 5.9 MAX 20-Apr-08 Sun 7:59 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 MI/RCB-MU 5.89 MAX 23-Apr-08 Wed 7:56 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/MI-CH 5.81 MAX 20-Apr-08 Sun 5:40 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DC/KKR-KO 5.69 MAX 21-Apr-08 Mon 9:39 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KP/RR-JP 5.66 MAX 25-Apr-08 Fri 9:53 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KP/MI-MO 5.36 MAX 20-Apr-08 Sun 3:57 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DC/KKR-KO 5.24 Source: Television Audience Measurement (TAM)

88 Table 4.3b. Indian TV Ratings – IPL 2008 Weeks 3-6 Channel Date Day Start Time Programme TVR MAX 02-May-08 Fri 9:46 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/DD-CH 6.7 MAX 29-Apr-08 Tue 9:44 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/MI-KO 6.57 MAX 28-Apr-08 Mon 9:43 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/RCB-BG 5.89 MAX 29-Apr-08 Tue 7:58 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/MI-KO 5.43 MAX 02-May-08 Fri 7:58 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/DD-CH 5.15 MAX 30-Apr-08 Wed 9:55 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DD/RCB-DL 4.97 MAX 03-May-08 Sat 9:52 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KP/KKR-MO 4.96 MAX 03-May-08 Sat 7:58 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KP/KKR-MO 4.93 MAX 01-May-08 Thu 9:53 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DC/KP-HY 4.85 MAX 28-Apr-08 Mon 7:58 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/RCB-BG 4.59 Channel Date Day Start Time Programme TVR MAX 08-May-08 Thu 9:45 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/RCB-KO 5.83 MAX 10-May-08 Sat 9:56 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/KP-CH 5.37 MAX 06-May-08 Tue 9:48 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/DC-CH 5.11 MAX 07-May-08 Wed 9:39 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 RR/MI-MU 5.01 MAX 09-May-08 Fri 9:45 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DC/RR-JP 4.77 MAX 10-May-08 Sat 7:58 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/KP-CH 4.65 MAX 06-May-08 Tue 7:58 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/DC-CH 4.41 MAX 05-May-08 Mon 7:58 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 RCB/KP-BG 4.3 MAX 09-May-08 Fri 7:59 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DC/RR-JP 4.23 MAX 07-May-08 Wed 7:59 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 RR/MI-MU 4.13 Channel Date Day Start Time Programme TVR MAX 14-May-08 Wed 9:51 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/MI-MU 7.72 MAX 13-May-08 Tue 9:45 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/DD-KO 7.29 MAX 16-May-08 Fri 9:40 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/MI-MU 6.59 MAX 15-May-08 Thu 9:47 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DD/DC-DL 6.14 MAX 16-May-08 Fri 7:57 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/MI-MU 5.96 MAX 14-May-08 Wed 7:58 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 CSK/MI-MU 5.62 MAX 13-May-08 Tue 7:59 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/DD-KO 5.11 MAX 15-May-08 Thu 7:59 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DD/DC-DL 4.87 MAX 11-May-08 Sun 9:46 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DD/RR-JP 4.49 MAX 12-May-08 Mon 9:48 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 RCB/KP-MO 4.48 Channel Date Day Start Time Programme TVR MAX 24-May-08 Sat 9:51 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 MI/DD-DL 6.19 MAX 20-May-08 Tue 9:48 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/RR-KO 6.06 MAX 24-May-08 Sat 7:58 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 MI/DD-DL 5.49 MAX 19-May-08 Mon 9:44 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 RCB/DD-BG 5.29 MAX 18-May-08 Sun 8:02 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 MI/DC-HY 5.1 MAX 20-May-08 Tue 7:58 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/RR-KO 5.05 MAX 18-May-08 Sun 9:48 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 MI/DC-HY 5.01 MAX 23-May-08 Fri 9:55 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DC/KP-MO 4.91 MAX 19-May-08 Mon 7:59 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 RCB/DD-BG 4.41 MAX 18-May-08 Sun 3:57 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KKR/CSK-KO 4.34 Source: Television Audience Measurement (TAM)

89 Table 4.3c. Indian TV Ratings – IPL 2008 Weeks 6&7 Channel Date Day Start Time Programme TVR MAX 30-May-08 Fri 7:59 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 SF RR/DD-MU 6.66 MAX 26-May-08 Mon 9:52 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 MI/RR-JP 6.49 MAX 31-May-08 Sat 9:46 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 SF KP/CSK-MU 6.31 MAX 31-May-08 Sat 7:59 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 SF KP/CSK-MU 6.01 MAX 30-May-08 Fri 9:57 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 SF RR/DD-MU 5.81 MAX 26-May-08 Mon 7:59 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 MI/RR-JP 5.1 MAX 27-May-08 Tue 9:43 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 DC/CSK-HY 4.97 MAX 28-May-08 Wed 9:47 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KP/RR-MO 4.94 MAX 28-May-08 Wed 7:58 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KP/RR-MO 4.59 MAX 25-May-08 Sun 9:45 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 KP/KKR-KO 4.58 Channel Date Day Start Time Programme TVR MAX 01-Jun-08 Sun 8:18 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 F CSK/RR-MU 10.06 MAX 01-Jun-08 Sun 10:13 PM L/T DLF IPL T20 F CSK/RR-MU 9.63 Star Plus 05-Jun-08 Thu 10:33 PM KYUNKI SAAS BHI KABHI BA 4.78 Star Plus 03-Jun-08 Tue 10:34 PM KYUNKI SAAS BHI KABHI BA 4.54 Star Plus 04-Jun-08 Wed 10:34 PM KYUNKI SAAS BHI KABHI BA 4.52 Star Plus 04-Jun-08 Wed 9:03 PM BIDAYI 3.94 Star Plus 02-Jun-08 Mon 10:32 PM KYUNKI SAAS BHI KABHI BA 3.82 Zee TV 05-Jun-08 Thu 10:02 PM BETIYANN GHAR KI LAKSHMI 3.75 Star Plus 02-Jun-08 Mon 9:00 PM BIDAYI 3.73 Star Plus 03-Jun-08 Tue 9:01 PM BIDAYI 3.73 Source: Television Audience Measurement (TAM) The table series shows that as soon as the tournament ended, peak TVRs returned to half of those delivered by the IPL.

Public Reaction MindShare Insights, the research arm of leading media buying agency MindShare, carried out a revealing survey into consumer response to the IPL. The survey, conducted in association with market research firm Synovate India, analysed responses from 3,602 viewers in the age group of 15-45 between 20 June and 2 July, in 11 Indian cities.

Most significantly, for the future of the IPL, there was evidence that the tournament was igniting local pride, something which previous events, such as the , or , had failed to achieve. The survey found that 88 per cent of Jaipur residents followed the fortunes of Rajasthan Royals; 87 per cent of Kolkata residents backed their team, the Kolkata Knight Riders and, in Mumbai, 68 per cent of the residents tuned in for Mumbai Indians‟ matches.

90 However, there was still some way to go before IPL fans embraced foreign players with as much enthusiasm as English Premiership football fans. Only 11 per cent of IPL viewers surveyed said it was the unique mix of players that attracted them most, and only 22 per cent were in favour of signing up more foreign players for the 2009 season. There is some way to go in transcending Indian nationalism, but it was nevertheless an encouraging start for franchisees.

Another striking finding was the extent of viewer loyalty to the IPL. Some 60 per cent of viewers didn‟t go to malls and restaurants when matches were being aired. The acceptance of IPL caused even diehard fans of Ekta Kapoor‟s family dramas – prime- time on television for years - to alter habits: 50 per cent claimed to have compromised their usual TV-watching schedules for the IPL. Hardest-hit were the Hindi general entertainment channels that showcase soaps and serials, with 42 per cent of viewers in this category switching to the IPL.

The combination of India‟s two biggest passions, Bollywood and cricket, also attracted a wide demographic, with women accounting for 48 per cent of the 102.6 million who tuned in to the SET Max channel to watch the matches, according to the study.

In fact, it is no exaggeration to say that the IPL became the focal point of many social lives. The three-hour format prompted gatherings scheduled around the matches. According to the study, 68 per cent of viewers planned their days around the matches and 57 per cent would leave work early on match days.

This staying indoors, in turn, saw a spike in home orders from major fast-food chains such as McDonald‟s, Domino‟s Pizza, Yum Brands Inc.‟s Pizza Hut and KFC. These fast-food chains are said to have reported a 10-15 per cent rise in home delivery sales during the IPL.

One commercial aspect of the IPL which could improve dramatically is merchandising. Only 17 per cent of respondents had bought some form of merchandise, while 37 per cent felt it was too new to invest in.

91 The greatest disapproval was reserved for the cheerleaders brought in by Vijay Mallya to support the Bangalore Royal Challengers. Only 2 per cent liked the short-skirted, bikini- topped Washington Redskins cheerleaders with their go-go boots

Conclusion The IPL claims to be recession-proof and leans heavily on the massive ten-year TV deal with Sony. IMG‟s Michael Fordham believes it is well-placed to ride out the recession.

He said: “It‟s arguably become the biggest cricket event in world and it can only get bigger. In the eyes of the fans in India, it‟s already overtaken international cricket. The crowds and viewing figures are bigger than anything. Each stadium has pretty much been full with capacities ranging from 30,000 to 90,000.

“It‟s true that advertising revenue has fallen, and that selling new sponsorships in any sport in the world is more difficult. The two biggest sectors of sponsorship are cars and financial services, the two industries worst affected by the economic crisis, and selling sponsorships in the IPL will be more difficult. But a lot of the IPL‟s deals have already been struck for five-years and media revenue for 10 years is guaranteed to the franchises so it should be fine.”

Fordham also argues that sports‟ marketing in India is catching up fast with its Western counterparts.

“At the moment, sports‟ marketing is nascent in India and there are few agencies. But that will improve and will help the IPL to grow towards its full potential. Indian sponsorship is still largely about getting your brand, or your name on television, on the boards or on air, graphics roll through cricket matches. There‟s far less below-the-line activity than in Europe; we‟ve seen how FIFA and the Olympics really activate the sponsorship and leverage their involvement.

“But it‟s changing fast. Already sponsors like Vodafone will be activating more things for the IPL this year, doing more competitions etc and there will be more and more fan activation, connecting with people, not just name on TV. Hospitality has traditionally been of a low standard in India but will also improve a lot this year.”

92 An entirely objective view comes from Nigel Currie of marketing agency Brand Rapport, which has been involved in cricket sponsorship for years. He largely concurs with Fordham.

“In the future the IPL will grow like the premiership. Any new league or concept takes time. The Premiership has been established for 17 years. For its first few years, it was dubbed a revamp of the old first division, which it was. But then it started to attract foreign owners, players and managers and the global snowball got bigger and bigger. It‟s become by far the biggest domestic league in the world, beating off and Spain, , .

“It‟s got more money, better TV deals, most of the best players. It‟s turned into a global spectacle. The Brazilians want to watch their players in the Premiership. The IPL will be looking to establish the biggest global league. It‟s very much based on the Premiership concept.

“Right now, it‟s dominated by rich Indian personalities, and what it needs is a Roman Abramovich type to decide he wants to extend his interests into India and buy a team. Already, the participation of Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff will whip up more interest in England this year.

“The IPL is still in its early stages, but if it can get it going, it will start attracting major foreign investors and start getting more and more players from different teams all over the world. It will get TV packages designed to suit those countries; games will be played for those countries at appropriate times. The tournament will go to a whole new level.”

Glenn Lovett, the vice-president of Octagon, a sponsorship agency with many interests in cricket sponsorship worldwide, including the IPL, believes „marquee‟ (premium) sponsorship properties, such as the IPL, are well placed to hold their value in a recession.

“There‟s no question that it is tougher for sponsors around the world and they are trying to extract more value for their expenditure, but we‟ve also found that marquee sponsorships – the NFLs, the Football Champions League, and I think the IPL, though

93 not immune to recession, should hold their value. These marquee events possess proven ways to connect to brands. It‟s the second-tier and below properties which are struggling more. The IPL is better placed than a lot of tournaments to ride out the recession. I‟m assuming growth from last year and it also fits so well with Indian culture.”

Not all commentators are as optimistic as Currie, Lovett and Fordham. The former England cricket , , argued in his column in The Times that the second season of the IPL would be much tougher for franchise-holders, casting doubt on whether they would even be able to match the average first-year shortfalls of $4 million.

Atherton wrote: “The warning signs were flashing red for the co-owner of Kings XI Punjab recently when he said: „These are difficult times and we need to work out ways to make sure that all the franchises survive‟.”

A report on cricket website Cricinfo provided evidence that sponsorship deals were proving elusive. The report said that just six weeks before the IPL was due to start, Rajasthan Royals, the IPL champions, had not finalised a team sponsor after their deal with insurance firm Bajaj Allianz broke down; HDIL, a housing company, had pulled out of an agreement with Kolkata Knight Riders; and Deccan Chargers, who finished bottom of the table last season, had lost their team sponsor, the Jaypee group.

According to the Cricinfo investigation, BIG TV, a DTH (direct to home) provider, had pulled the plug on a sponsorship deal worth $31.1 million; A deal with Pepsi, originally the league‟s ‟pouring partner‟, worth around $2.5 million annually has been „decentralized‟.

Multi Screen Media‟s (Sony‟s Indian television network business) former chief executive Kunal Dasgupta, admitted that his company was finding sponsors hard to come by in the IPL. Sony is reportedly charging Rs 3.5 - 4 lakh ($7-8,000) for a 10-second ad spot – a 100 per cent premium on the 2008 rate – but the rates are believed by some critics to be too high in the recession.

The franchises reckoned to have the stronger business models had done better. The Rajasthan Royals franchise, bought by Emerging Media for $67 million, was worth $140

94 million in February 2009 (based on the sale of a 12 per cent stake for $15.4 million). Kolkata Knight Riders, co-owned by Bollywood actor/producer Shah Rukh Khan, had taken the smallest hit after the first season, and signed a three-year associate sponsorship deal with Coca-Cola (Sprite brand) for a reported Rs 5 crore (around $1 million) every year.

However, the operational cost of running a franchise had increased and was between Rs80-120 crores ($16-24 million), partly caused by the increase in the cost of dollars and the rise in the number of foreign players.

Valuations To Rise In the long-term, when India emerges from recession, franchisee values should rise, said Balu Nayar, former IMG managing director: “While revenues are important, they normally have a lower weightage in determining valuation in this category, relative to the typical corporate organisation. Secondly, intangible assets are accorded more importance in overall valuations than is normal. Most significantly, there is the indefinable factor of „ownership prestige‟, which is very significant in sports franchises.”

Future valuations, therefore, hold the key to investor interest in IPL franchisees. “Very few media properties have the potential to break even in such a short time,” Nayar said.

The IPL model has also provided each franchisee with a built-in insurance policy in the form of inflation. The franchise fees, which form the bulk of costs, will remain constant through 10 years. But the revenues they earn by way of ticket sales, team sponsorships, merchandising, are expected to rise each year.

Terrorism The recession was not the only problem facing the IPL in 2009. Terrorist attacks on Sri Lankan cricketers in Lahore, in Pakistan on March 4, put the tournament in jeopardy. There was the threat of cancellation due to security concerns, and also the threat of individual players pulling out.

There was much discussion between the IPL and the Indian Government about how to guarantee player security. The IPL‟s first two attempts at drawing up a schedule were

95 rejected. It then submitted a re-revised schedule that incorporated several adjustments including, it is believed, a decision to drop Delhi from the list of venues.

The Indian government‟s refusal to part with central security forces during the general elections, which largely overlap with the IPL season (April 10 to May 24), raised serious doubts about whether the IPL would not be postponed.

IPL officials were desperate to stick to the original timeframe as it might not be possible to find another slot for the tournament on a crowded international calendar, with most of the star players required for the Twenty20 World Cup in England in June. Cancellation would be a massive financial blow to the franchises.

There was also the danger that, even if the tournament went ahead, individuals would pull out, diminishing the IPL spectacle. For example, New Zealand all-rounder , who is part of the Chennai Super Kings squad in the IPL, along with , admitted to worries about security.

And , the former England coach and an influential voice in world cricket, counselled caution in a column in The Guardian, saying some types of terrorist attacks can be carried out more easily in India than Pakistan.

“The traffic is often so bad in the big [Indian] cities where a lot of the cricket is played that the coach can move along only slowly at times, which turns it into a sitting for terrorists,” he wrote in his Guardian column. “There's nothing stopping a tuk-tuk pulling up alongside and detonating a bomb. If I were one of the England guys who signed up for the IPL, I would be concerned.”

IPL Moves To South Africa All the doubts about security caused a sudden rethink and IPL commissioner, Lalit Modi, decided to name South Africa as host nation of the 2009 IPL. England had also been considered as host, but the unpredictable spring weather made it too much of a gamble. South Africa‟s government sealed the deal with a series of promises about security and the speedy clearance of visas for players and officials.

96 The tournament began on April 18, a week later than initially scheduled, and a day after the one-day series between South Africa and Australia ended. , , Centurion, , East London and hosted the matches.

The swift decision by Modi was a shrewd one. The show simply had to go on. As Chennai Super Kings owner N Srinivasan said, money was not an issue, but of more importance was that the tournament was held regardless of the logistical challenge. But doubts remained over whether the second season would repeat the excitement of the first. Shane Warne didn‟t think so, and said it was regrettable that the IPL was not taking place in its true homeland, India.

There were also few leading South African players involved. Holders Rajasthan Royals hold the biggest representation with , Morne Morkel and Tyron Henderson, although Chennai Super Kings are coached by Kepler Wessels and have Albie Morkel and on their roster. Because of the later start, England‟s players were restricted to just a two-week stint.

The IPL certainly did its best to find imaginative ways of making the tournament work abroad. A Miss Bollywood IPL South Africa contest ran parallel to the main event and drew its own market share. With the possibility of a role in a Bollywood movie, a business class trip to India and three lakhs for the winner, interest was high. The hook was to pick the loveliest female spectator from the live crowds.

Crowds were reasonable in the first half of the tournament averaging between 14,000 and 16,000 at the main venues – about half full. But this was certainly not comparable to the packed houses in India.

Indian Cricket League The Indian Cricket League (ICL) was born out of the frustrations of billionaire Subhash Chandra to get high-profile cricket matches on his satellite television channel, Zee Telefilms.

97 The cricket-mad Chandra made the highest bid for the telecast rights to the but was refused. Chandra then bid again for telecast rights the following year and ended up in an unsuccessful court battle.

But Chandra did not give up easily. He made another bid for the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy rights and again lost. By this time, he had had enough and responded by creating the ICL.

“They denied us the cricket content,” said Himanshu Mody, business head of ICL and Zee‟s sports, “so, we had to create our own content.”

Zee Telefilms announced that it would partner the major infrastructure group IL&FS to create the ICL with prize money of $1 million for the first year‟s winners. The first tournament was set up with a total prize fund of $3.85 milllion, and comprised six teams.

Most national cricket boards warned their players against joining this unofficial league and, as a result, most of the international players were retired, such as , and Craig McMillan, or former players with little hope of breaking back into their national team, such as and Daryl Tuffey. A notable exception was , who chose to opt out of his Pakistan Central contract to sign with the League. The Pakistan Cricket Board subsequently banned players involved in the ICL from playing domestic cricket, a move that prompted some players, notably Farhat and , to take court action.

The first ICL began on 30 November 2007. Six teams played at Panchkula, near Chandigarh. It concluded on 16 December 2007 with a win for . The ICL returned in October 2008 with an increase in the number of teams to nine and rule modifications, such as awarding nine runs for a 90-yard hit. But opposition to the ICL from boards and the ICC continued into the league‟s second season.

98 Table 4.4. TV Ratings IPL v ICL IPL 2008 First match reach 14,455,200 Last match reach 23,177,800 Max reach 23,177,800 Min reach 7,540,100 ICL 2007 First match reach 6,978,500 Last match reach 6,111,600 Max reach 7,442,800 Min reach 2,857,600 ICL 2008 First match reach 7,695,000 Last match reach 12,708,000 Max reach 14,716,000 Min reach 3,015,000 Source: Audience Measurement and Analytics (Audience Map) The first two tournaments, although overshadowed by the IPL, got good TV ratings (Table 4.4). In the first ICL, the highest TV audience was 7,442,800, compared to 23,177,800 for the final of the IPL. But the ICL did much better in its second edition, reaching 14,716,000 for one game.

The tournament‟s third edition was scheduled to begin in April 2009, but was postponed, with an admission that the global recession had been one of the causes. , the former Australian batsman and an ICL board member, said: “The financial crisis played a part. But the ICL will be played later in the year. I‟m very confident of that.”

Although the delay appeared to cast doubt on the ICL‟s future, a different perspective came from Steven Hirst, of the Cricket Exchange Agency (CricX), who acts as an agent for ICL players.

He said: “The main reason for the delay is not the recession, but the big uproar about the ICL becoming a sanctioned league. The ICC had a big meeting at the end of January [2009] in Australia, to discuss the possibility of sanctioning it. I‟m certain they will do so very soon, if not for 2009, then certainly for 2010. But the ICC also wants to be seen to be doing the right thing by the BCCI and the IPL.”

99 The issue is crucial for the ICL. If players feel that by joining the ICL they could be banned from their own domestic cricket competitions, many will be reluctant to sign on the dotted line. Players with international ambitions will be even less likely to risk playing in an unsanctioned tournament.

Hirst argues that, if the ICL does become sanctioned, it will have the potential to attract the world‟s biggest players and become a genuine rival to the IPL. It could also go down the franchise route and, with major stars to peddle, sign up the big sponsors.

The ongoing legal issues remain complex and unresolved, however, partly because there have been court battles in different corners of the world. In Pakistan, for example, the High Court lifted the domestic ban on six Pakistani players who had joined the Indian Cricket League, thus clearing 17 „rebel‟ players to play in local tournaments.

However, the decision clears them only to play in domestic cricket, not for the Pakistan side. Legal representatives for the six players said they would study the possibility of challenging the international cricket ban as well. Until that ban is overturned, the most talented, aspiring young Pakistani cricketers are unlikely to want to play in the ICL.

In England, the situation is even more complicated. In 2007, the former England cricketers, , , Chris Read and , all signed contracts with the ICL before the start of a legal dispute, thus avoiding bans from the 2008 season of county cricket.

Of the four, only Nixon played in the second ICL in October 2008 and he was also planning to play in the third ICL before its delay. He is confident he can avoid a ban from county cricket, but the situation is far from clear. As it turned out, a delay to the ICL this year did not force the ECB‟s hand and delayed a decision on the matter.

With legal and financial uncertainty surrounding the ICL, it is difficult to predict its future. Reports suggest that Chandra is now considering turning the event into an annual, international Twenty20 tournament in November, with the participation of an England XI among his priorities.

100 Nick Hoult, the Twenty20 correspondent of the Daily Telegraph, says it is likely that the ICL will soon become part of the IPL.

“It‟s very much a secondary tournament to the IPL and, even if it becomes sanctioned, it‟s likely to remain secondary,” Hoult said. “It doesn‟t have the same huge sums of money behind it. It could become a second division of the IPL, operating under the same banner.”

Allen Stanford’s Twenty20 tournaments The ECB‟s controversial decision to get into bed with the Texan billionaire Sir Allen Stanford ended disastrously with his investigation for “fraud of shocking magnitude” by the US Securities And Exchange Commission (SEC).

This incredible episode in English cricket began with Stanford landing in a helicopter on the Lord‟s outfield and opening a suitcase full of money, and ended with him going on the run from the FBI.

So why did the ECB accept the too-good-to-be-true offer of a man who had already been rejected by the cricket boards of South Africa and India, and whose financial affairs had been investigated by Scotland Yard? Surely, they should have been more cautious.

In retrospect, the decision to partner Stanford was a huge gamble born out of desperation. For the ECB, their Texan sugar daddy provided them with a counterweight to the game‟s powerhouse, India. Stanford‟s suggestion that the Indians couldn‟t be trusted to lead the Twenty20 revolution was music to the ears of those in English cricket who bridled at the shift to Asia of the sport‟s centre of gravity.

“No disrespect to the Indians or the IPL, no disrespect whatsoever. They did this too fast, too quick. The ECB‟s taking a more logical approach. They have a better structure,” declaimed Stanford. He told the ECB that, backed by his largesse, Twenty20 cricket had “the potential to be the most popular in the whole world”. The ECB and its West Indian allies could lead the charge if they “take this sport now, as they say in Texas, by the horns”.

101 Stanford‟s big-talking Texan rhetoric turned heads at the ECB because they wanted their own lucrative cash cow to prevent the players signing up with the IPL. The deal with Stanford to play five $20 million (£11.1 million) Twenty20 matches against England in also kept the West Indies Cricket Board sweet, a necessary political move as the ECB felt increasingly isolated in world cricket.

Money was another consideration. The ECB stood to gain £3.5 million from the Antigua matches and had an agreement for a quadrangular tournament at Lord‟s. But there was a great deal of criticism levelled at the deal even before Stanford‟s financial affairs came under investigation. The major objection was that the ECB had handed over too many privileges to Stanford in the forthcoming English Premier League, scheduled to begin in 2010.

These included an option for naming rights to one of the divisions, an option for a Stanford team to take part, and the right to outbid any sponsor involved in the EPL. According to Nick Hoult, in the Daily Telegraph, this left the ECB marketing team worried that they would have nothing left to sell to potential sponsors.

At least, these barriers to sponsors‟ interests were removed when the ECB cancelled its deal with Stanford shortly after his financial affairs came to light.

But stripped of the Stanford bargaining chip, the ECB will find the lure of Indian paydays for its cricketers even harder to fend off. The ECB had begun to bow to the inevitable even before the SEC charged Stanford with perpetrating an $8 billion investment fraud, releasing the likes of Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff to the IPL this year.

Despite a clash with the early part of its own domestic season, the ECB allowed the two former England captains to play for the first three weeks of the six-week IPL competition that started in April 2009. The next step could be the ECB clearing the England calendar completely in future years so that players can play for the entire IPL season.

IMG‟s Andrew Wildblood was scathing of the ECB‟s decision to partner Stanford: “When we put together the IPL, we were extremely rigorous. The defining element of the event was going to be its commercial appeal. In effect, we sold something to buyers before it

102 even existed and we convinced others of the vision. We had to back up the deal with hard bucks. And we didn‟t have to risk our own money,” he told the Guardian. “Stanford‟s business model was different. It was not even commercial. Unless he could justify it by promoting the Stanford brand in Europe or here, it was not going to work. It was not sustainable and the ECB should have recognised that.

“The IPL is a professional sports league, like the English Premier League in football. What is special about the IPL is it is consistent with modern India. It has an identity. Mumbai should play Delhi as much as Manchester should play Liverpool. It is a city thing. The thing about England playing Stanford‟s Superstars was that no one cared. You have to have a fundamental tribalism to sustain interest in an event. I thought that was a disgraceful abuse of the England shirt, to have them playing anyone but another country.”

The ECB downplayed the fiasco. Will Collinson, ECB marketing manager, said the collapse of the deal with Stanford was not at all a blow to finances because it was “not budgeted income”. “It‟s not a huge issue now,” he added.

But IMG‟s Fordham said the severing of the Stanford deal strengthened India‟s hold on world cricket‟s finances. “The ECB should have been the next power base after India but they‟ve made a lot of poor decisions and missed the chance to support the IPL.

“They should have accepted India‟s dominance, as other countries have done. It‟s not as if India has a ground plan to dominate world cricket. It‟s just the way it‟s happened - 75 per cent of the game‟s money came from India before the IPL, which has tipped that figure well above 80 per cent.”

Fordham continued: “Because India is the biggest financial market in cricket that naturally leads to it controlling the game. Smaller teams like Zimbabwe, New Zealand and Sri Lanka will inevitably want what India want because it means they will get more matches against them, which means they will get more income from TV and sponsorship. India‟s position at the top of world cricket is impossible to challenge.

103 “If you look at the ICC World Cup, broadcast income is from brands looking for the Indian market. When Pepsi sponsor the ICC market, they do it predominantly for access to the Indian market.”

Other judges were even more damning in their assessment of the foolishness of the ECB‟s desperate politicking with Stanford.

The cricket broadcaster and writer, called for the resignation of ECB chairman Giles Clarke, in an article in the Independent.

“Much the most alarming point to come out of it all is that the quality and direction of the chairman‟s decision-making has been horrifyingly exposed. It is not even so much the current collapse of Stanford and his affairs; more that he was glorified by a board desperate to offset the embarrassment of irretrievable and expensive breakdowns first with India and then with South Africa and Australia. “These cost English cricket its share of the billion-dollar television deal for the Champions Twenty20 League – another IPL spin-off. Clarke instead turned to the Caribbean and the Texan who could not convince anyone else to play with, or for, his money. Political expediency was leaked as a reason for the sudden tie-up with West Indies cricket – votes count at the altar of the ICC – but the truth is that the chairman needed to appease restless England players, who were salivating at the riches available in the IPL and, even more urgently, he needed a trophy.

“This is what he appears to be, a trophy hunter for his time at the helm of the English game and a financial one at that. With each tranche of money allocated to the counties, he has been able to act as their saviour and those without a viable or sustainable business model of their own have fallen at his feet. But he does not appear to have given the game at large the pastoral care it needs.”

The Australian cricket writer Gideon Haigh was even more scathing, saying in an article on Cricinfo that the ECB had made itself a “laughing stock”.

“The WICB had at least some reason, in their church mouse-poor region, for accepting Stanford at face value,” Haigh wrote. “The ECB is wealthy, secure, and apparently

104 populated by men who understand business: those ever-so-impressive individuals behind whom sporting organisations have, during the last decade or so, fallen in obedient lockstep. Chairman Giles Clarke was an investment banker at CS First Boston; chief executive David Collier was a senior vice-president at American Airlines; its board consists, according to the ECB website, of „ten experienced non-executive directors‟.

Haigh joined Nicholas in calling for Clarke‟s resignation. “Clarke‟s celebration of his new term of office richly deserves to be the shortest in history,” he wrote.

Clarke refused to resign, but he promised to review the way the ECB assesses potential investors. He discussed the matter with Andy Burnham, the United Kingdom‟s Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, and Gerry Sutcliffe, the Minister for Sport.

He said: “I plan to discuss with the Secretary of State suitable arrangements for securing independent verification and input into the next five-year plan and how his department can assist in the complex financial arrangements that may be needed in examining whether people and institutions are fit and proper to be involved in the game.”

A spokesman for the DCMS said ministers felt that cricket had put “money above integrity”.

105 5. THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE AND THE ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE

Sponsors’ Responses To The Twenty20 Cup The sponsors of the Twenty20 Cup have praised its power to reach out to a younger audience and shift their brand image by changing perceptions of what cricket can be.

Three of the game‟s four partners, npower, Totesport and Marston‟s, though from the widely divergent sectors of energy, gambling and beer, had similar stories to tell about the effectiveness of their campaigns. The Twenty20 Cup‟s fourth partner, Clydesdale/Yorkshire Bank, chose not to respond.

Npower provided a particularly instructive case study because it sponsors both England‟s Test matches and the Twenty20 Cup as part of its deal with the ECB.

Tim Percival, npower‟s PR, said: “Twenty20 ticks different boxes from the Tests. We took out the Test sponsorship in 2001, a year after npower was born, because as a new brand, we wanted to align ourselves with a product which was very trusted and had a great deal of heritage behind it.

“When we became more established, Twenty20 gave us a chance to show off our personality. We see ourselves as a challenger brand, like Virgin, which positions itself as the new kid on the block compared to the big historic player, British Airways. We see ourselves as the exciting younger brother to British Gas, another long-standing, trusted brand. Twenty20 cricket is dynamic, exciting and still quite young, so it‟s got a lot of synergy for us.”

Up to a point, the value of the sponsorship is quantifiable. Npower and the other partners measure the effectiveness of their deals using data provided to the ECB by Sports Marketing Surveys.

“As a brand, as with every investment, we‟re looking for a return and it‟s provided a great return so far,” said Percival. “It‟s grown in popularity and the media value we get back is

106 significant. It‟s been a great marketing platform for us, almost better than we expected. We feel lucky that we got in at the start.”

The data showed that npower‟s promotional activities for the Twenty20 Cup generated more than £250,000 worth of AVE (Advertising Value Equivalent) in 2008, up 100 per cent from 2007. Examples included a number of media competitions for consumers to win Twenty 20 tickets.

Npower was also satisfied with 2008‟s figure of 11 hours of television exposure from 13 pieces of inventory, including branding on perimeter boards, pitch logos and cards.

All the sponsors benefited from a 30 per cent increase in crowd attendances from 2007, to about 600,000, partly caused by a rise in the number of games, and a 50 per cent increase in the cumulative TV audience, to five million viewers.

In a similar manner to npower, Marston‟s, the official beer of the England team, reaches different audiences. At Test matches, it preaches largely to the converted: the middle- aged white men who are the biggest consumers of cask ales. With Twenty20 cricket, its aim is to seduce the next generation.

Peter Jackson, director of marketing at Marston‟s, said: “We‟re very pleased with the value of the sponsorship and where it‟s taken us. Cricket has been a fantastic vehicle because we can take our beer to existing customers, the 35-plus age group, then at Twenty20 games, we can try to change the perceptions of young people about cask ales.

“One way of changing the brand‟s image is through the simple association with this exciting new form of the game. We also get lots of young people trying our beers at games. We‟re trying to make them realise the flavours from an English brewery can be just as rich as premium foreign lagers like Leffe.”

Meanwhile, Totesport‟s sponsorship deal for the Twenty20 Cup has helped promote the company‟s strategy of expansion away from its traditional background in horse racing

107 betting. Totesport promoted its Twenty20 sponsorship heavily alongside the company‟s online brand, with its appeal to younger gamblers.

“Twenty20 has definitely shifted our image and improved our brand awareness,” Totesport‟s Will Reynolds said. “We get all the inventory at the grounds, including perimeter boards; the dugouts get branded as do interview backdrops; we also do the odds for live Sky games. We‟ve monitored the value through Sports Marketing Surveys and we‟re very happy with how it‟s gone. We also pick up a lot of coverage through the local and national press.”

Nigel Currie, of Brand Rapport, was not surprised by the sponsors‟ positive responses to the Twenty20 Cup: “There are many appeals to sponsors, but one of the key elements is that three hours is the optimum viewing time for television,” he said. “Although, traditionally, cricket gets a good TV audience, it dips in and out. Few people want to watch it for eight hours a day, so the audience varies the whole time. Twenty20 has a good audience at the start and can retain it to the finish.”

A second major attraction, he felt, was the variety of options available to sponsors wishing to promote their brands. “There are much more flexible rules than for one-day internationals and Test matches, because the games are not governed by ICC legislation. Twenty20 has a much more flexible approach to branding, both around the players and on them. It‟s a much more overtly commercial operation. Test cricket is miles better than it was, but it‟s still a bit old-fashioned.”

The ECB‟s marketing of Twenty20 as a family event backs up Currie‟s theory that sponsors appreciate the greater licence to have fun. For instance, the npower Derby on finals‟ day involves the 18 first-class county mascots in an It‟s A Knockout-style race around the pitch. Meanwhile, co-sponsor Totesport (a bookmaker) provides odds on the Derby. “We don‟t take much money; it‟s more of a PR stunt,” said Reynolds.

The partnership between npower and Totesport is unusual. The Twenty20 Cup sponsors normally operate in isolation. Most of the inventory is negotiated by sponsors with the ECB, and the four sponsors have little contact with each other. One of npower‟s main concerns was to secure the rights to boundary cards, which display the company‟s logo

108 every time they are waved. “We were really keen to secure the cards when the ECB diced up the inventory,” said Percival. “We felt it was a desirable element for us because so many boundaries are hit in Twenty20.”

Marston‟s used humour to promote its brand. “One tongue-in-cheek campaign featured WG Grace [a 19th Century cricket icon] with a Kevin Pietersen-style Mohican haircut. The message was that „Marston‟s is everything you thought it wasn‟t, rather like Twenty20 cricket‟,” said Jackson.

Another Marston‟s campaign featured a competition to win the best seats in the house, which on finals‟ day, were leather sofas perched on top of the roof behind the bowler‟s arm. “The Marston‟s Maidens looked after them and we gave them a couple of drinks. We were also promoting responsible drinking under the slogan „drink within your boundaries‟,” said Jackson,

County Responses To The Twenty20 Cup Two academics from Coventry University, Christopher Hyde and Adrian Pritchard, sent out an open-ended questionnaire to the marketing departments of the 18 first-class counties in March 2005. The responses were published by the International Journal of Sports Marketing & Sponsorship in their paper, Twenty20 Cricket: An Examination of the Critical Success Factors in the Development of the Competition.

Six questions were asked, the first two covering the areas of competition timing and the influence of weather. Respondents were also asked a further four questions regarding critical success factors to date, future critical factors, impact on finances and whether the format had attracted a new audience. Responses came from seven counties.

Timing All respondents believed the timing of the event was critical to its success. The 5.30pm start enabled school children and most workers to attend and encouraged families to come together. Without other major sporting events occurring simultaneously, Twenty20 also received more media coverage.

109 Weather All respondents believed the weather had an impact on the competition‟s success. There is a tendency in wet summers for spectators to delay reserving tickers until the last minute, and not to turn up if the weather forecast is poor. The dates for games should be chosen with an eye on optimizing weather conditions.

Critical Success Factors Respondents listed a number of factors. Five mentioned the peripheral entertainment, which appealed to non-traditional fans. One respondent described the competition as developing a reputation for fast and lively cricket, presumably through word-of-mouth. Satellite television and media coverage were mentioned four times as critical success factors in promoting the game.

Also mentioned were: 1. The use of extensive market research 2. Family orientation 3. No other competition at the same time 4. Early evening timing 5. A result is gained 6. Word-of-mouth advertising 7. Appeal to women and children 8. Extra activities leading to crowd involvement.

Future Critical Success Factors Media interest was mentioned by five respondents in creating the buzz of excitement surrounding Twenty20. Five respondents also pointed out the dangers of over-exposure and the need to avoid too many games. Two respondents wanted to maintain the current format in a sensible calendar window. These cautious responses were interesting in view of the later decision to bring in a second Twenty20 tournament. Many counties worry privately about overkill.

Other factors included the need for counties to invest in marketing activities to sustain success, and the moving of games away from headquarters to other areas of the county. The latter would ensure games are played at smaller grounds, where spectators sit

110 cheek-by-jowl, helping create the sense of excitement and enjoyment commented upon by one respondent.

This sense of communal enjoyment is harder to achieve at large grounds, such as Headingley, in Yorkshire, where sell-outs are rare. The result can be a half-empty stadium despite lots of ticket sales.

Finances All eight respondents agreed that the Twenty20 competition had made finances healthier and many relied on it to boost income. For most, Twenty20 fixtures were the only games to sell out and brought in a big percentage of revenue. Revenue was also boosted by secondary spending in catering outlets, beer sales and soft drinks. Another mentioned corporate hospitality as a good source of revenue.

New Audience All respondents felt a new audience had been attracted to the competition with women and children cited twice in this regard. Also mentioned were families, non-county members, corporates, young people, people fed up with one-day cricket, 18-35 year olds and general sports fans.

ECB Research An ECB marketing study carried out in 2008 appeared to confirm a desire for more Twenty20 among cricket fans.

Will Collinson, the ECB‟s marketing manager, said crowds at the Twenty20 Cup games were asked a series of questions about the shape they wanted the future one-day game to take.

Some responses were entirely predictable. A vast majority of fans wanted games to start later in the day – between 5pm and 6pm - so they could watch them after work, and their preferred duration was three hours. Few wanted a return to the lengthier Pro40 formula.

More interestingly, there was quite a lot of support for a two- Twenty20 formula, which would have been a way of lengthening the day‟s play to 40-overs a side, but

111 maintaining the urgency of Twenty20 cricket. The speed at which overs are bowled would still have enabled it to be played after work.

But Collinson said that by far the most popular option was the introduction of more Twenty20 cricket. To a certain extent, this was almost inevitable when the ECB decided to conduct its survey at Twenty20 games, as Collinson admitted.

“We did that because we wanted to address the broad demographics you get at Twenty20 matches,” he said.

Collinson also claimed that there was anecdotal evidence that the counties wanted another Twenty20 competition from informal talks, even if an ECB survey had not been carried out.

Differentiation Although the counties do appear to be in favour of a second Twenty20 tournament, they have real concerns that the ECB will struggle to differentiate it from the existing Twenty20 Cup.

This is the view of Stuart Robertson, the former ECB marketing director often credited with inventing Twenty20 cricket, who is now commercial director of Hampshire.

Robertson endorsed the nine-team English Premier League put forward by MCC‟s chief executive, Keith Bradshaw, and Surrey‟s chairman, David Stewart. This radical break with tradition would have involved counties amalgamating under new names. It was rejected by the counties and the ECB. Will Collinson said the counties found the idea „dangerous‟, as though it might open Pandora‟s Box, leading to the end of England‟s historic cricketing identities.

But Robertson disagrees. “I liked the Bradshaw-Stewart proposal. It got a bad rap because it was seen as city-based and ignoring nine of the counties. But, there were lots of things in the proposals to safeguard revenues into the coffers of the counties who wouldn‟t be playing at their own grounds.

112 “And it wasn‟t as if Surrey would have been playing at the Oval as Surrey. It could easily have been Surrey and Middlesex together. Or London. At Hampshire, we might have seen Hampshire and Sussex joining forces. The beauty of the proposal was that it strongly differentiated the EPL from the Twenty20 Cup.

“We will do our damnedest to avoid it, but there is a fear now that, with all 18 counties playing as counties in both Twenty20 tournaments, it will take a lot of differentiation to get the differences straight in the minds of the public. Which one qualifies you for the Champions League? Which is a knock-out format, and which influences your position in the league? Which time of year are they on? It could be confusing. Keeping things simple is very important.

“I‟d prefer a format much closer to the IPL, where you get international players coming in and you get the level of investment and sponsorship. Another issue with 18 teams is that the teams will be weaker. International players will be spread more thinly as there are more teams.”

Richard Kay, the sales director at Yorkshire, had similar worries to Stuart Robertson. He agreed that the game could benefit from another Twenty20 tournament and that the counties were happy with the June timeslot. But he echoed Robertson in worrying about the demarcation of the two tournaments.

“Due to the power of India, you do worry about whether there is enough differentiation for them to be freestanding tournaments in the eyes of the consumer,” Kay said. “Cricket is different to football in that it has a hired gun approach to players. They can end up representing several different club sides. There is not as much team identity as in football. It is imperative that the ECB finds a way to differentiate the two cups in the public‟s eye.

“But I feel positive about all the other aspects of the second tournament. I don‟t think it represents overkill, not if there are nine home games per club over three or four months. The key is to get the competition structures right so the games are played on the same day at the same time. If there is not a regular appointment to view, it causes confusion in the minds of fans.”

113

Will Collinson, at the ECB, admitted that no definite plans have been made on how to differentiate the tournaments.

“The differentiation depends on the finer detail of what the two tournaments are,” he said. “We are having a lot of discussions at the moment, but no decisions have been made. There are a number of ways we can go, depending on what the EPL working title becomes, which players are involved, the time of day of the games, and so on. All those factors will affect the positioning of the new tournament.

“We are determined that the Twenty20 Cup, as the domestic competition, will take on a very local flavour. It will be marketed as a county-orientated tournament. One possible way of differentiating the two might be to use a name like the Warwickshire Bears for one tournament and the county name for another.” What the ECB will not do, however, is abandon the county names, he said. That being the case, real differentiation seems much harder to achieve.

Nick Hoult, the Twenty20 correspondent of the Daily Telegraph, believes the ECB have set themselves an impossible task. “Once the ECB decided to go with all 18 counties in both tournaments, it made it almost impossible to have real differentiation. A franchise scheme would have worked better. They‟ve now missed the boat and put off the sponsors,” Hoult said.

Undoubtedly, an important factor in the ECB‟s decision to stick with the counties was pressure from the broadcaster Sky. “We had a clear message from the broadcasters that the county system is what keeps the game ticking over. You have to listen very closely to that message,” said Collinson.

“A city-based concept would have differentiated the teams, and created a smaller pool, but this is a very emotive topic for the counties. You get radically opposed views depending who you speak to. The franchise route does open up a world of possibilities, but it has implications for the whole future of the game in this country. We‟ve had lots of conversations based around that. Many felt it was a dangerous route to go down.”

114 It is not surprising that the ECB listened to broadcasters‟ wishes. The deals with Sky and Five continue to bankroll the game. In 2008, the ECB signed a new deal with Sky and Five to extend their broadcasting of cricket from 2010-2013. The contracts are worth a combined £300m. The deals also meant that there will continue to be no live cricket on terrestrial television, a situation which has existed since the current TV contract began in 2006.

The Recession Glenn Lovett, of Octagon, though he argues that the ECB should have followed the IPL down the franchise route, believes the global recession throws up more pressing concerns: “The global recession is the biggest issue for the ECB and the EPL. As an agency, we are finding that times are tough and sponsorship deals are coming under much more scrutiny. Will RBS, for example, be able to continue to sponsor cricket when there is taxpayer‟s money involved? The deals will come under so much scrutiny.

“It‟s tough for rights holders now. For a new competition like the EPL, it‟s absolutely not the ideal timing. It‟s already had a few false starts and it‟s not clear exactly what the right way forward is. The ECB needs to get all its ducks lined up in a row and move on from the Stanford fiasco. Ultimately it‟s a good thing that that‟s come to an end.”

The Daily Telegraph‟s Nick Hoult, agreed that the timing was unfortunate. “It‟s really bad luck for the ECB,” he said. “They are desperate for sponsors, but they are really finding it hard. So many deals are coming up for renewal in the next six months [2nd/3rd quarters 2009] at just the wrong time, especially for the financial services companies. They‟ve lost Vodafone and could lose NatWest (RBS) when you look at the state they are in. Npower are renegotiating and may decide to stay on board. The ECB will be forced into remodelling their sponsorship deals to suit the situation: They will have to look at structured deals or short-term deals in this tough market.

“If we lose the Ashes and the Twenty20 Cup doesn‟t go so well in 2009, then the ECB will really struggle.”

Hoult, however, does believe an English EPL has many things going for it. “Firstly, no one else plays cricket in June or July, so there is a window there to attract the world‟s

115 best players. Also, English fans are willing to pay £20 or £30 for a ticket, far more than elsewhere in the world. Tickets cost a few rupees in India and are far cheaper in Australia and South Africa than in England.

“This means the ECB takes more in gate receipts than other cricket boards. The EPL business model will be very different from the IPL, which is all about TV. Sponsorship is less important in England where earning enough revenue is far more about getting people through the turnstiles.”

While potential gate receipts offer hope of revenue, the EPL, argued Hoult, needs Asian players to enter the big time and compete with an IPL. The problem is that Lalit Modi has so far refused to release Indian players for an EPL.

“Without the Asian players on board, England won‟t be able to sell the broadcast rights to an EPL for much money,” Hoult said. “There won‟t be any interest in India. But the BCCI knows that in India, with TV companies feeling the squeeze, if £50m goes to the ECB, that‟s money which can‟t go to the BCCI. The BCCI fears making the EPL attractive because it will be a rival for revenue from sponsors and broadcasters. It‟s another major headache for the ECB.”

Relations between the ECB and BCCI had sunk to an all-time low when the ECB refused a share in the IPL and got into bed with the maverick Allen Stanford instead. There is still a lot of negotiation to be had to mend relations, but the feeling persists that the ECB needs the BCCI more than the BCCI needs the ECB. “Relations are much better than four or five months ago than at the end of 2008,” says Hoult.

“The England team went back to India after the Mumbai bomb attacks and Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff have been released to play in part of the IPL. But there‟s still no promise of a tit-for-tat arrangement. There are deals to be done.”

The Question Of Overkill Overkill was a major concern of many counties, even when they supported the EPL concept. The issue of overkill is related to the question of whether or not an EPL can be

116 financially successful, but it also has wider implications concerning the impact of Twenty20 on other forms of cricket.

James Buttler, media relations officer at Yorkshire, was worried about overkill.

“When Twenty20 cricket came in it was new and hit the right spot at the right time. But getting the right amount of Twenty20 is a delicate balance. Adding the EPL to an already overloaded fixture list could cause some fans to lose interest,” he said.

“The ECB was right to scrap the Pro40 because it‟s not mirrored at international level, but I‟d prefer to see the existing Twenty20 spread across the season and players getting a few days off. They are often away for two weeks at a time on the road. At Yorkshire, our former Australian players, and , have said that at home they have four or five days to prepare for a game – time spent working on techniques in the nets, or on how to play a particular bowler. Overcharging the fixture list could have a negative knock-on effect on the international game.

“The four-day game offers a lot and we can‟t afford to let it die just to become battery chickens on the one-day wheel. We need to work to keep it vibrant without compromising the tradition. We can‟t afford to put all our eggs into one Twenty20 basket and make short-term gains for long-term losses.”

Mark Foster, the marketing manager at 2008 county champions Durham, had a more positive view of expanding the Twenty20 game, befitting a marketing man.

“I look at the fixture list and I ask myself how can I get more youngsters to come and watch the games? The answer is that Twenty20 games will bring them in. They can‟t attend over 60 per cent of four-day games because of when they are played so why should I market something to a target market which can only have 60 per cent of what you are offering?

“Having said that, yes, I do believe there is the potential for overkill. We need to maintain the high standards of the games. The more Twenty20 that is out there, the more it has to

117 maintain its high-quality. I think the tournaments can be managed well enough so overkill doesn‟t happen.”

Will Collinson, at the ECB, said they were providing the market with what it wanted.

“To a degree you can‟t buck market trends. Ultimately, we are talking about a consumer sport being played in July, August and September which should be most of the time in bright, sunny weather and lots of it is in the school holidays. The question is how do you engage people? The logical answer is to do what we‟ve done and put on more Twenty20 games,” he said.

“But we are also very aware of the need to protect the longer form of the game. Players regard it as the most important form. They realize that to be seen as a top player you must succeed in the longer form. Most players harbour aspirations to play for England and see the four-day game as a way of developing their games. We won‟t get full stadiums, but it has its place. Playing Test cricket is still what players aspire to. But we must also be aware that Test cricket is in decline, something we are addressing at the ECB.”

The Champions League

Schedule The planned inaugural Twenty20 Champions League in 2008 was first delayed by fixture congestion, then cancelled altogether following terrorist attacks in India.

This international club competition for the strongest clubs from Australia, England, India, Pakistan and South Africa, is scheduled to take place in September and October 2009 for the first time.

The idea of an international competition involving domestic clubs, modelled on football‟s Champion‟s League, was first mooted by the BCCI after the end of the spectacularly successful first series of the IPL.

118 Cricket authorities in England, India, Australia and South Africa announced the Twenty20 Champions League‟s creation on 7 June 2008, as well as a planned restructuring of domestic cricket to accommodate the newcomer.

Pakistan‟s participation was initially mooted, but not confirmed when the tournament was first launched. Following a series of discussions and the announcement of the creation of a from 2009, it was confirmed that two Pakistani teams would compete.

The competition, which is chaired by Lalit Modi, the Chairman and Commissioner of the IPL and Vice-President of the BCCI, was set to take place from late September to early October 2008 in India. But a schedule clash with Champions Trophy, forced a delay to December, 2008. Then, terrorist attacks in Mumbai, in November 2008, forced its cancellation.

The 2008 Twenty20 Champions League was to have been played over an eight-day period, consisting of two divisions competing in a round-robin format. This was to have been followed by an elimination round of four teams, the top two of each division, and then the final. If team numbers change for 2009, the format is likely to alter.

A press release from the BCCI said the Champions League of Cricket, 2009, will be played between 25 September and 11 October 2010 and will consist of 12 teams, four more than planned for 2008.

Sponsors The Asian broadcaster ESPN Star Sports has gone a long way to ensuring the financial success of the Champions League by shelling out $1 billion (about £715 million) for the exclusive television rights.

Manu Sawhney, managing director, ESPN Star Sports, said: “Since we hold all the commercial rights for the tournament, we can sell tailor-made packages to advertisers depending on their needs.”

119 Since international cricket boards are participating in this tournament, a majority of the brands that will get associated with the event are of global stature.

Sawhney said sponsorship rights would be sold at a premium price, especially the airtime slots on the channel. She said domestic brands could bypass buying the on-air adverts and just stick to other sponsorship rights depending on the extent of visibility required.

The different categories of sponsorships that ESPN will sell are title sponsorship, on-air, ground sponsorship, umpire sponsorship and merchandise. The individual team sponsors will remain unchanged.

The title sponsorship has yet to be announced, a fact that some commentators, including the Australian cricket writer Gideon Haigh, have used as evidence that cricket is being affected by the global recession. But industry sources have disclosed that big-name brands, including Nokia, Pepsi, LG and Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG), are in the race to win the title sponsorship. Sources have also disclosed that Videocon and Vodafone and other domestic brands could also contest for various sponsorship rights.

“We are already in talks with five to six brands in categories including, telecom, mobile handset, beverage and white goods, for the title sponsorship,” said Sawhney.

The global economic conditions have changed a great deal since she made the remarks in October 2008. Were ESPN negotiating their deal now, it is hard to see them paying such a fortune for the rights. The broadcaster will expect to find sponsors, but sponsors will be entitled to drive hard bargains and indulge in brinkmanship.

ESPN has secured broadcast deals with the free-to-air Network Ten, in Australia, Willow TV, the portal for live internet cricket, and Arab Digital Distribution, which will broadcast the Champions League across the Far East. All three deals cover the first three editions of Champions League Twenty20.

120 6. INTERNATIONAL TWENTY20

History On 17 February 2005, Australia defeated New Zealand in the first men‟s full international Twenty20 match, played at Eden Park in Auckland. Both sides turned out in kit similar to that worn in the 1980s. Some of the players also sported moustaches/beards and hair styles popular in the 1980s taking part in a competition amongst themselves for best retro look.

The first in England was played between England and Australia at the Rose Bowl in Hampshire on the 13 June 2005, which England won by a record margin of 100 runs.

On 9 January 2006, Australia and South Africa met in the first international Twenty20 game in Australia.

The first ICC World Twenty20 took place in South Africa from September 11, 2007 to September 24, 2007, with India defeating Pakistan in the final at Johannesburg.

The second ICC World Twenty20 will take place in England in June 2009. Most of the games will be at The Oval and Lord‟s. One interesting innovation is that the ICC has approved the Women‟s World Twenty20 to run alongside the men‟s.

Because of Twenty20‟s wide demographic appeal, this unprecedented exposure will give a fantastic boost to women‟s cricket and could prove a milestone in the development of the women‟s game.

Other Twenty20 Tournaments Around The World After its success in England, domestic Twenty20 competitions proliferated around the world (see Table 6.1). Obviously, the most important were in India, but there were also very successful ones in Australia, South Africa and West Indies, at least until the WICB severed its links with Allen Stanford earlier this year.

121 Table 6.1. Twenty20 Tournaments Around The World Country Event Australia KFC Twenty20 Big Bash Canada Scotiabank National T20 Championship England Twenty20 Cup and the Twenty20 English Premier League India IICL, IPL and Indian Inter-State T20 Championship National Elite League Twenty20 also known as Sahara Elite League New Zealand State Twenty20 Pakistan Pakistan Super League and RBC Twenty-20 Cup South Africa Standard Bank Pro 20 Series Sri Lanka Inter-Provincial Twenty20 USA West Indies Stanford 20/20 Zimbabwe Metropolitan Bank Twenty20

Each followed the English model of combining entertainment with fast-paced cricket.

South Africa was quick to pick up on Twenty20‟s potential and has run the Standard Bank Pro20 Series since the 2003-04 season. The success of this franchise-based tournament inspired the ICC to allocate the first World Twenty20 Cup to South Africa in 2007. A closer look at Standard Bank‟s sponsorship is featured in Section 7.

Cricket Australia was slower to respond, though the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash was eventually established in 2005 and hailed as one of the biggest innovations in Australia since the advent of 30 years earlier. The format has proved highly popular, with crowds in excess of 10,000, even for mid-week games.

Meanwhile, from 2006 to 2008, West Indies regional teams competed in the Stanford 20/20 tournament, with the US financier providing funds of US$28 million. That ended spectacularly in 2009 and West Indies cricket will be forced to face up to life without Stanford‟s millions.

122 7. CASE STUDY. STANDARD BANK’S SPONSORSHIP OF CRICKET SOUTH AFRICA

Sportainment: Changing the Pace of Limited-overs Cricket in South Africa: A Case Study of Standard Bank‟s Sponsorship of Twenty20 Cricket in South Africa.

By Michael Goldman, senior Lecturer at Gordon Institute of Business Science, Johannesburg, South Africa and Kate Johns, of Standard Bank of South Africa.

Background This study addresses the need to deepen the understanding of sports marketing in an emerging market context of significant cultural diversity. The in-depth case study of Standard Bank Pro20 Cricket explores the strategy, execution and results of the successful launch of a new cricket format in South Africa.

Standard Bank of South Africa (SBSA) is a leading financial services provider in South Africa. Established in 1863, the organisation serves both individual customers and corporate clients, and is Africa‟s largest bank in assets and market capitalisation. SBSA is part of the Standard Bank Group, which is present in 17 countries across Africa and 37 globally. In 2007, SBSA shifted its brand positioning to a proposition of „Inspired.Motivated.Involved‟.

SBSA has been a sponsor of cricket in South Africa since 1997. In order to revitalise domestic cricket, which was suffering from declining crowd attendances and reduced interest, SBSA and Cricket South Africa (CSA) launched the concept of a Twenty20 cricket format in April 2004. As a shortened version of the one-day game, the 20-over concept resulted in a game that was „action-packed, fast and furious, boundary-bashing, seam-splitting‟ (Standard Bank, 2007).

This new shortened version was called the Standard Bank Pro20 series and offered “a colourful alternative, a way perhaps to persuade a public swamped by entertainment options that cricket might still have something to offer on a Friday night or Sunday afternoon” (D Williams, Financial Mail, 2006).

123 The Standard Bank Pro20 series was a four-week domestic cricket tournament, played between six CSA franchises (provincial unions), with 18 scheduled matches receiving live game time and broadcast activation support from the commercial and public broadcast media partners, SuperSport and the South African Broadcasting Corporation.

Objectives The stated objectives for SBSA in investing in Pro20 cricket was to build on its existing high levels of association with cricket in South Africa and demonstrate, to its chosen target audience, that its brand was progressive and able to constantly evolve. Specifically, the organisation wanted to shift the positioning of its brand within the youth market, to enhance its appeal and relevance (Standard Bank, 2007).

Given its traditional involvement with cricket, SBSA also wanted to partner CSA to develop a new cricket experience that attracted new audiences to an exciting new format. Through internal marketing campaigns and sport hospitality, the organisation viewed the investment as an additional opportunity to engage stakeholders, clients and staff in cricket activities.

Implementation The premise of the new format was to change the way cricket was traditionally played and viewed, not only as a sport but also as a form of entertainment. New elements were also added off the field to complement the excitement and thrill that was happening on the field. This combination of exciting cricket and the off-the-field entertainment elements made Standard Bank Pro20 cricket unique. The phrase coined in South Africa to capture the essence of Standard Bank Pro20 cricket was Sportainment – the combination of sport and entertainment.

The inaugural Standard Bank Pro20 series in 2004 was a huge success, and Standard Bank has continued to sponsor the tournament.

In 2005, based on the success of the first two seasons of domestic Standard Bank Pro20 series, SBSA announced it would be making an additional investment in the international version of the Standard Bank Pro20 cricket game. This international extension of the successful domestic formula in South Africa set benchmarks globally. As South Africa was the clear leader and innovator of this format, the inaugural

124 Twenty20 World Cup was hosted by the country in September 2007. It was widely accepted that the award of this prestigious international event by the International Cricket Council (ICC) was strongly influenced by the successful launch and sustained growth of Standard Bank Pro20 cricket.

CSA President, Norman Arendse expressed this sentiment in his comments that the Twenty20 World Cup marked “a first for cricket – the first time this format of the game will have been played on a truly global scale… Thanks to Standard Bank the shorter form of the game has the imagination of many cricket spectators and new fans to the sport” (Standard Bank, 2007).

Pillars Of Experience The Standard Bank Pro20 cricket series was designed to enhance at least two of the three identified pillars of experience, including the cricket experience, stadium experience and broadcast experience. These three pillars were interlinked and together provided an integrated Sportainment experience.

Cricket Experience The innovations to the game of cricket were achieved through a partnership between SBSA and CSA. These included the introduction of dugouts for players on the side of the field, to increase the visibility of players for stadium and broadcast audiences. This innovation also increased the pace of the game, facilitating quicker changes in batsmen. Team kit designs were enhanced to be more visually appealing and current. This enhancement extended to the traditionally conservatively dressed umpires, who were given a more colourful, informal and relaxed kit. Umpires were also transported onto the field by branded vehicles. A significant rule change to encourage a more expansive style was the introduction of a for a no ball.

Stadium Experience Given the positioning of the Standard Bank Pro20 series as a „fast and furious‟ version of the game, a number of off-the-field entertainment elements, linked directly to the on-the- field action, were designed. Chief among these were the Standard Bank Pro20 Hard Hats, distributed to spectators as head protection against the significant number of fours and sixes expected in the new „boundary-bashing‟ format. Branded Hard Hats were

125 distributed in team colours and became collector‟s items, even appearing at non-cricket sport events.

To enhance the experience of the youth target market, a dunk tank was introduced at the side of the field that would „dunk‟ children into a tank of water whenever a four or six was struck. Additional mobile broadcast cameras were used to capture regular crowd shots for display on large screens in the stadium. For the International Pro20 cricket series, additional enhancements included professional dancers on podiums within grandstand areas who entertained crowds whenever a boundary was hit. This was supported by an elevated DJ booth that provided a high-energy soundtrack to the game and fireworks at key moments of the game. Traditional horizontal digital advertising boards were also replaced with wider vertical „Power Towers‟ at various points around the stadium. These were used to communicate positioning messages, images and sounds that paralleled the on-the-field action.

Broadcast Experience In close partnership with the satellite commercial broadcaster, SuperSport, Standard Bank Pro20 cricket introduced a number of untested initiatives to leverage the cricket and stadium experience for live ball-by-ball viewers. Commentators were relocated from the media suite and commentary boxes to the grandstands, where they were able to interact directly with spectators during breaks in the game. By providing the captain with an earpiece and lapel microphone, the commentators were also able to link directly to the thoughts and opinions of players at key points in the game. Live interviews were also hosted with outgoing batsmen after each wicket. Heart-rate monitors were even attached to certain players during the game to provide broadcast viewers with additional insight into the action.

Integrated Marketing Campaign Standard Bank Pro20 cricket was successfully launched to the South African public through an exciting and visually powerful non-traditional national marketing campaign. The campaign elements of all four series and the international games had messages of entertainment, show business, and action-packed fun. The above-the-line and below- the-line communication executions used to leverage the sponsorship included a strap line of „It‟s wicket cricket‟, developed for the inaugural series, and used again for the second series. By the beginning of 2006 the line had evolved to „Xperience it!‟. This

126 strap line was used for the third and fourth domestic series, as well as the International Standard Bank Pro20 cricket matches.

„Megabillboards‟ were placed strategically around the country, with promotional television advertisements flighted at 40 Forecourt Television Network sites at high-traffic petrol filling stations. A national radio activation strategy comprised a five-week campaign on the popular youth station 5FM titled „Are you game? Gimme tickets‟. This strategy included on-air and ground promotions and stunts for supporters to win tickets to their regional games. The activation used the Sportainment elements unique to the Standard Bank Pro20 cricket, including finding 11 strangers to start their own Standard Bank Pro20 cricket squad, testing the strength of the hard hats, making 50 watermelon hard hats for fans, and teaching morning rush-hour motorists the new rules of the game.

A comprehensive below-the-line campaign was initiated at the beginning of each domestic series at 96 traffic intersections nationwide. The campaign used approximately 385 promoters to distribute 200,000 fixtures flyers; as well as to hand out 35 100 flyers at 10 university campuses. Promotional activities were also held at 26 nightclubs and 87 shopping centres. A dedicated online environment was created at www.standardbankpro20.co.za to provide information on the series, fixtures, franchises, event activities, rules, broadcast enhancements, ticket info, live news and scores.

Some 137 strategically selected SBSA were used to promote each game. The selected branches received A4 and A2-sized decal stickers for windows and hanging mobiles that mimic broken and smashed windows - the „result of fast and furious cricket action‟. To promote Standard Bank Pro20 cricket, SBSA used its branch network on match days, with front-line staff wearing the branded Hard Hats on the day of the game. Staff incentives in the first series were managed through the Standard Bank Group‟s Intranet with a competition for each game in the series.

A PR and media kit of images was distributed to the media prior to each game. Dedicated syndication services, including photographic and editorial, were in place to cover all matches, and to drive coverage and awareness of the Standard Bank Pro20 cricket. Additional media coverage was generated through key events, such as the inaugural 20-over international game in South Africa, the presentation of a Hard Hat

127 birthday cake to South Africa‟s captain, Graeme Smith, on the day before the Standard Bank Pro20 cricket International against Pakistan, and the wearing of the internationally- recognised red ribbon by Indian and South Africa players on World AIDS Day.

Results The Standard Bank Pro20 cricket series fulfilled all stated objectives. In terms of brand association with cricket in South Africa, independent research conducted by Millward Brown found that SBSA had the highest awareness of cricket sponsorship (82 per cent), compared to Castle Lager (25 per cent) and MTN (30 per cent), who were involved in longer versions of the game. Cricket South Africa research supported this view, finding that 36 per cent of all sports‟ fans spontaneously responded that Standard Bank was the sponsor of Pro20 cricket.

Standard Bank Pro20 cricket contributed to a sudden growth in the cricket fan base in South Africa, particularly amongst the youth and Black supporter groups. The Black market, which has traditionally not supported cricket, comprised 25 per cent of the Standard Bank Pro20 cricket fan base. Black adult cricket spectators increased by 3.7 per cent, compared to an increase of Black spectators of 1 per cent for other top sports. Young (12 to 18-year-old) spectators increased by 140,000. These positive indicators also manifest in the desired brand positioning shift and market share for Standard Bank within the targeted youth market. Deputy editor of The Wisden Cricketer, Edward Craig suggested that the new format of the game “seems to have cut the rubbish out of cricket, digested it, packaged it and delivered it to an audience that realises it wants it”.

For Cricket South Africa, Standard Bank Pro20 Cricket has reversed a steady decline in stadium attendances for domestic cricket. Average seasonal attendance per region had fallen from 28,459 in the 1996-1997 season to 7,935 in the 2003-2004 season.

In comparison, average crowd attendances for Standard Bank Pro20 cricket grew from 9,656 in the first year to 12,490 by 2007. This included 306,807 spectators watching 34 completed games in the first two seasons of the newly launched format.

Total spectators grew to a combined figure of 318,655 for the 2006 and 2007 series. During these two series, the 18 Standard Bank Pro20 games attracted 39,000 and

128 33,000 more spectators respectively than the 38 one-day 45-over cricket series. According to CSA Chief Executive Gerald Majola, the “record attendance figures confirm our predictions that it would be an exciting appetiser to the inaugural ICC 2007 Twenty20 World Championship”.

Cricket South Africa research indicated that 37 per cent of cricket fans had been to a domestic Standard Bank Pro20 cricket match since 2004, compared to 22 per cent who had been to a 45-over domestic game. Forty-two percent of cricket fans were also found to „often/always‟ watch Standard Bank Pro20 cricket on television. Majola also said the Standard Bank Pro20 Cricket series raised the standard of the domestic game.

Partnerships The research found evidence of a partnership approach to sponsorship. The stated objectives of the sponsor, Standard Bank, were the same as those of the sponsored property, Cricket South Africa, and the broadcaster, SuperSport. All three partners shared the same goals and equal responsibility for them. The three partners made decisions jointly and acted together in the design and execution of the tournament. The research also found evidence of creative sponsorship activation, using the Sportainment concept of three integrated experience pillars. The three pillars of the cricket experience, stadium experience and broadcast experience reinforced each other to create an innovative sponsorship activation that contributed to achieving the sponsorship objectives.

Conclusion This study demonstrates the value of viewing a sport sponsorship as a partnership, not just a handover of financial resources. Standard Bank Pro20 Cricket was designed and executed through close collaboration between the sponsoring organisation, the sport rights-holder, and the satellite broadcaster. By conceptualising the strategy as a set of three interrelated pillars of experience, each partner was able to contribute to and benefit from the success of the new format. The study also highlights the benefits to a sports brand, such as Cricket South Africa, when the sponsoring organisation sets out objectives that are strongly in the interests of the game. Managers responsible for building the brands of sports rights holders should thus attempt to work collaboratively with sponsoring organisations, by sharing the strategic objectives of the sport and inviting sponsors to contribute to the development of the sport.

129

Managers of sports brands could reflect on how they might involve their existing and prospective sponsors in the development of the game. They could also question how their organisation‟s processes and structures are designed to encourage open and honest dialogue and working between senior members of their organisation and sponsoring organisations. These sports brand managers could also consider what the next innovation in their game might be that will dramatically enhance the experience of existing supporters and appeal to large groups of non-supporters.

From the perspective of the sponsoring organisation, this case study demonstrates how a brand can shift its positioning within a given customer segment and translate this into greater market penetration. The study also considers the effective use of multiple sponsorship activations to achieve the desired „image transfer‟ (T Meenaghan, Irish Marketing Review, 2002) from Standard Bank Pro20 Cricket to Standard Bank. Managers facing similar challenges should design sports marketing investments that are meaningful and connected to the target market in question. These investments should be closely aligned with the desired positioning of the sponsoring brand. Relevant prior and post positioning studies should be included in the strategy to measure the brand shift that has occurred.

Managers of brands marketing through sport could therefore consider the extent to which their sponsorship objectives are aligned to the strategy of their organisation. They could also reflect on the measurements that would need to be put in place to track the results of their investment and the different communication methods available to better reach their chosen target market more effectively. These sponsorship managers could also question how they and their teams can adopt more of a partnership approach in order to develop the sport to the benefit of all.

130 8. CASE STUDY. YORKSHIRE CCC – MARKETING OPERATIONS

Background Yorkshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs of the professional English domestic cricket structure. Its limited overs team is called the Yorkshire Carnegie following a sponsorship deal with Leeds Metropolitan University (Leeds Carnegie) and the shirt sponsor is Bradford and Bingley (rebranded to Spanish parent, Santander, name in June 2009), a Yorkshire-based building society.

The club is historically the most successful in English cricket having won the County Championship 34 times although it has been less successful in limited overs cricket. Indeed the club‟s on-field successes were mainly over a long period of domestic cricket domination predating limited overs cricket and started in the Victorian era and ended in the 1960s.

Since 1968, the club has won the County Championship just once in 2001, and has picked up three limited overs trophies, the National League in 1983, the Benson & Hedges Cup in 1987 and the Friends Provident Trophy (then C&G Trophy) in 2002.

The reasons for the lack of success from 1968 onwards include internal disputes and the refusal, until 1992, to drop the rule that had been introduced in the early 20th century by Lord Hawke, a Lincolnshire man, that stated that only those born in Yorkshire could play for the team. Other major counties in England were able to recruit from a pool of top players from across the country as well as signing major international stars.

In recent decades, the club‟s profile has remained high partly a result of its historic success and the culture of cricket in the county; Yorkshire has more amateur cricket clubs than any other region of England. The club also plays most of its home games at the Headingley Carnegie Stadium in Leeds, which is one of the world‟s leading test match grounds. YCCC also uses North Marine Road in the resort of Scarborough, which houses the annual Scarborough Festival an event that traditionally attracts large numbers of holiday makers.

131 A major criticism of Yorkshire, particularly in the 1990s, was the fact that it was unable to develop players from the vast local Asian communities in Bradford and Leeds. In some quarters, the accusations hinted that the club had a policy that bordered on racist. It was not until 2003 that Ismail Dawood became the first British-born Asian to play for Yorkshire. In 2006, all-rounder made his debut. Yorkshire's academy team also produced , the first Yorkshire player of an Asian background to captain England at any level, in this case Under 15s Captain. Rafiq has since gone on to play for the county at full professional level and is now also a regular first team member.

The club‟s relatively large supporter base, test standard stadium and its heritage meant that it always had the resource potential to bounce back relatively quickly should the right management team be put in place. Indeed its financial resources meant that, despite the relative lack of on-pitch success, Yorkshire has still been able to field some of the world‟s greatest cricketers such as , Darren Lehmann, and in recent years.

From a commercial point of view, the brand Yorkshire County Cricket Club is one of the strongest in the game, with international recognition and arguably the strongest fan identification in cricket.

The club has been able to capitalise on this through its sponsorship and commercial offerings and its deal with Leeds Metropolitan University in particular has helped it to modernise the Headingley stadium.

Objectives The key marketing objectives for the club are to grow attendance at all forms of the game and to increase participation in cricket across the County, which in theory should help to develop long-term attendance and membership.

However, Yorkshire clearly faced a number of problems as a result of its recent history and its fan base was predominantly male, white and to a large extent elderly.

To attract more fans and consequent revenue, most sports clubs consider the key strategy is to improve on-pitch performance. In Yorkshire‟s case, this would have been a

132 short-sighted and potentially dangerous strategy. First, there is never any guarantee of sporting success, regardless of budgets devoted to achieving such an outcome. Second, to do so would have overlooked two key issues. The first is that cricket is essentially a form of entertainment and although a winning team is likely to garner more support, there is plenty that can be done to draw fans to the game regardless of sporting outcome.

Second, the club‟s reputation for bringing through local players of Asian descent was, as discussed, poor. It was clear that a programme was needed to increase participation, scouting and player development in such communities.

The marketing objectives and consequent strategy, therefore, had to consider the two key issues. How does the club sell more tickets in the short-term, and how does it develop links to its local communities to ensure long-term interest among a younger, more varied demographic?

Non-ticket stadium revenues such as catering and hospitality, as will be discussed, are less important to the club for contractual reasons, although new facilities have offered opportunities to increase revenue from debenture seating and premium priced tickets.

Marketing Implementation

Ticket Promotion

County cricket clubs have long recognised that selling tickets to the traditional four-day matches is an uphill struggle and that the short form of the game offers the greatest potential to develop revenue from ticketing.

The advent of Twenty20 has, as discussed throughout the report, helped to inject new excitement into the game and draw larger numbers of spectators, including newcomers to live matches.

133 Paul Mitchell, Yorkshire‟s marketing manager, explains the impact from the club‟s point of view:

“Obviously, it‟s much easier to market Twenty20 as games are played after work, or at weekends, rather than longer forms of the game, for which the first three days are mid- week. It‟s easier to market Twenty20 and easier to get people into the ground. The purpose of Twenty20 cricket is to attract younger fans and hence we have brought out a family ticket, which costs £30 for two adults and two children. That amounts to about a 40 per cent discount.

Figure 8.1. Twenty20 Cup Promotional Flyer

The club has used several different media to market the offering for the shorter game. This has included running teaser competitions on regional radio to get people interested in the fact that there‟s going to be Twenty20 at Headingley. It has also run commercial advertisements on regional radio as a follow-up.

134 “The idea,” says Mitchell. “Is to say that even if you haven‟t won a competition, why not still come along to Twenty20? And we‟ve run those ads on Yorkshire Radio.”

Yorkshire Radio covers the whole county, but the club has also negotiated with radio Aire, which has a Leeds focus, and to Pulse radio station in Bradford to improve its focus in the big urban areas.

“We haven‟t focused as much on promoting Twenty20 in South Yorkshire, including Sheffield and Doncaster, because games are often played after work, which is a disincentive for people to make the 40-mile journey from Sheffield to Leeds.” says Mitchell.

“We are, however, having discussions about taking the Twenty20 format around the county to broaden the fan base.”

Scarborough, on the east coast of Yorkshire, is realistically the most likely ground to host major Twenty20 matches. The town‟s cricket festival has ensured its ground has been maintained to high playing and spectator standards. The festival has created a strong cricketing heritage locally and the large numbers of summer holiday makers means that there is a large audience seeking entertainment and in the right mood to spend money to get it. Indeed the town will play host to a one-off Twenty20 game for Anthony McGrath‟s benefit year in 2009. However it is feasible that Twenty20 could be played in other cities such as Hull, Middlesbrough and Sheffield. The quality of the batting wicket is not so important as it is for the longer-form game and grounds in these venues would be suitable.

The club has promoted the game in local papers in Yorkshire. For example, it had a successful campaign in the Yorkshire Post group for ODIs. These adverts originated with the Great Exhibition of Cricket 2009, which is an ECB initiative to market the game to all walks of life. The ECB made a budget available to all the counties who were hosting one-day internationals. Individual counties were allowed to do their own marketing and Yorkshire worked with its design agency to produce the advertisements, but as an ECB offering. These have appeared in regional papers across Yorkshire.

135 “The uptake in tickets has been good,” says Mitchell. “At the end of March [2009], we‟d sold about 6,500 tickets for the one-day international on May 21, against West Indies. That‟s around half of current capacity, which is a bit reduced by the work going on to build the new pavilion. We are now around the 10,500 ticket sales mark, so it‟s going to look quite full.”

The club has formulated similar plans for the Twenty20 Cup, but the exact nature of the campaign depends on what the budgets are and how much help will be available from the ECB. The ECB provides a lot of support for all the counties in marketing the game, in terms of materials‟ branding for different competitions.

Yorkshire have also looked carefully at the marketing target audience. Traditionally, where marketing has actually taken place, clubs have targeted professional males. Mitchell, however, believes that such strategies mean lost opportunities:

“When we are marketing the family tickets, normally the first person picking up on it is the mother, who is thinking of taking the kids out in summer.”

As a result, the club has been conscious of the need to communicate through channels that mothers will engage with and local media advertising has been altered to take this target group into account.

At a national level, the club has taken part in a campaign originally developed by the ECB.

“We are running a campaign which was set up by the Sun newspaper in conjunction with the ECB,” says Mitchell.

“For years, the Sun has offered its £9.50 holiday deals throughout the UK. The ECB came up with a similar idea – doing a £9.50 ticket for the Twenty20 – for one adult and one child. They approached each county saying how many tickets can you offer? We said we can offer so many at Headingley. The adverts have gone in the Sun newspaper‟s sports section, which has a huge readership. It‟s also on the Sun website

136 and on the ECB‟s website. That‟s working well and we‟re expecting a big uptake nearer the games.”

Another of the club‟s initiatives is to promote one-day internationals and Twenty20 games to the various Chambers of Commerce. YCCC is a member in Leeds, Sheffield and York and has made specific deals available to their members. For example it offered a package for 10 members to have a team night out for £99.

The club also markets to the thousands of amateur cricket clubs in Yorkshire. No other county has anywhere near as many teams. The Bradford League, for example, is one of the most successful in the country.

“Although I came in with a remit to market Twenty20 and ODIs, I did notice immediately that we needed to do more work in the Bradford area,” says Mitchell.

“There was lots of good work going on in Leeds, but Bradford was a bit neglected, which is a missed opportunity as it‟s a big city of about 450,000 people.

“Because I used to work for Bradford and Bingley Building Society, Bradford was my own stomping ground and I had a lot of contacts – at Pulse radio, at Bradford Community Broadcasting, at the Telegraph and Argus newspaper. I‟m using all those old contacts to help promote the club in Bradford.”

For ODIs, Yorkshire has focused on e-marketing via newspaper websites, radio websites and e-mails/e-newsletters to its customer/membership database.

The branding on most ECB related promotional material is controlled by the ECB because the governing body is keen to ensure it has a consistent message. That said, Yorkshire was permitted to create its own material for the ODIs for which the county employed its design agency. An example of such work can be seen in the promotional poster for the England v West Indies ODI (Figure 8.2, overleaf). The design here drew on the official colours of the West Indian team but employed to Yorkshire brand message (Yourkshire).

137 Figure 8.2. ODI Promotional Poster

Marketing To Members Mitchell points out that marketing to the traditional members must not be forgotten in the rush to embrace Twenty20:

“This [Twenty20] doesn‟t mean we neglect promoting other forms of the game. We still focus on the county game, but through our members rather than the younger crowds. Without beating around the bush, the members tend to be from the older generation and have the time to attend the longer forms.

“We focus on marketing the game to members at the end of each season. The internationals are a big help in that. First refusals are offered to those with membership for one-day internationals and Test matches, so we tend to see an increase in membership applications in years when we have a lot of internationals at Headingley. Then, we run retention exercises to keep as many members as possible for the forthcoming season when there won‟t be such attractive international games on offer.”

138 The nature of such marketing has concentrated on a mix of newspaper and online advertisements, combined with email and direct mail shots. The emphasis in the communication to the targets is the benefit of having first option on buying tickets for prime fixtures.

Merchandise Merchandise is an area that is gradually becoming important for cricket clubs, but revenues are nowhere near those achieved in football, for example.

Mitchell started in his position at Yorkshire too late in 2009 to make a real impression, and implementation of plans to expand this area have been put on hold until after the 2009 season.

“I‟ve worked on some other projects with the club shop manager, but they‟ve not been highly successful,” says Mitchell.

“We produced a number of offers for teams for teamwear. We sent letters out with details and an ordering form. We have 75 focus groups [local cricket organising committees] dotted around the county and they offered the teamwear deals to their affiliated cricket clubs. But we probably started the promotion a bit late in the day in February and March, by which time, lots of clubs will already have purchased their teamwear.

“At four-day games, it‟s difficult to push the shop as it‟s behind the West stand which is often quite empty on match days. When we have one-day games, it tends to be busy. It‟s usually a case of walk-ins buying teamwear. There‟s not been a lot marketing around that but we‟re going to look at it and try to improve in that area.”

Catering Catering is a major problem for Yorkshire. At the moment the license is owned by club, which adjoins Headingley, in the guise of their company Leeds Experience. It‟s a technical relationship concerning ground ownership, which, according to Mitchell, will eventually cease. A lot of money is lost, especially on international match days. Leeds Experience also own the rights to concessions around the ground so revenue from concession holders goes to Leeds Experience.

139

“It means that we can‟t make money from hiring out the club facilities, except for the indoor school, which we own,” says Mitchell.

“Because we don‟t make money from catering or bars, we focus very much on making money through selling tickets.”

Stadium Revenues The new pavilion will be finished in May 2010 and will contain 500 new seats, 300 of which will be debenture seats.

“Debenture sales will make a lot of money for Yorkshire,” says Mitchell. “It will be jointly financed by Leeds Metropolitan University and the club. The facilities will be used by Leeds Metropolitan on non-match days (most of the year). It will be in use 365 days a year and the vast majority of floor space will be used by the university. “

Sponsorship Marketing As part of its sponsorship marketing, the club created a professional presentation to demonstrate the club‟s attributes and ambitions to potential commercial partners.

The set of slides is part of a bigger presentation, much of which cannot be reproduced for reasons of commercial sensitivity.

The sponsorship presentation material effectively comprises three elements:  The club‟s heritage  Its plans  Research material

“It was important to emphasise the heritage of the club, because lots of the companies wanting to sponsor Yorkshire are based in the county and interested in that heritage,” says Mitchell.

140 Figure 8.3. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Introduction

Figure 8.4. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Mission

The club‟s „Mission Statement‟ is to be the most successful and respected club in the World. Achieving this off the pitch has become increasingly important to the club as will be seen later in the case study in the section that deals with the community programme.

141 The presentation also clearly puts its business relationships at the centre of operations. The club recognises the benefits delivered through its commercial partnerships and that these go significantly beyond traditional cash considerations

Figure 8.5. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Strategy

The club strategy is effectively governed by a grass approach. In simple terms it is about getting children interested in cricket through playing. The theory is that they will then either follow the game as fans or, in those cases where they have exceptional talent, they will be developed by the club as players. From a marketing perspective, the club realises that locally developed players tend to be much more popular with fans and this also has the benefit that they become role models for children who can identify with players‟ develop and have similar aspirations.

142 Figure 8.6. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Club Appeal

Yorkshire CCC has, as discussed, many assets including its strong heritage and infrastructure. The cricketing infrastructure goes beyond physical assets such as the stadium and training facilities and includes its membership and its current standing as the only significant sports organization to represent the entire county.

Figure 8.7. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Player Appeal (Past)

143 It is arguable that heritage plays a bigger part in cricket than in any other sport. Interest in the game is not confined to current sporting success because fans have a fascination with statistical records and the great players of the past are constantly recalled in media commentaries. Yorkshire has probably the strongest sporting heritage of any cricket club in the world and past players are legends in the game. Figure 8.7, for example, doesn‟t even mention players such as Sir Leonard Hutton, or Hedley Verity to name but a few.

Figure 8.8. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Player Appeal (Present)

As discussed earlier, the club continues to develop or attract some of the world‟s leading players. Michael Vaughan was England captain for the high profile 2005 Ashes winning series and is one of the finest test batsmen of his generation. also starred for the England team of 2005 and Adil Rashid is one of the most exciting prospects in English cricket in 2009.

144 Figure 8.9. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Player Appeal (Future)

Figure 8.9 explains how the club is building on its youth policy. Through its academy and community programme, Yorkshire is developing talent for the future and simultaneously engaging with large numbers of young potential fans. For sponsors, keen to invest over the long-term, such information is important because they need to budget and plan activation strategies over several years.

Information about player development is useful to potential sponsors because it will help to determine how the club will be perceived in the future and how this might fit with brand objectives. It is part of establishing whether the culture and aims of the two parties fit.

If the team is likely to comprise young, local players and with varied ethnic backgrounds, it can make a big difference to how activation programmes are developed. The creative approach to the sponsorship can be on youth and community activities. This might, for example, fit a particular sponsor‟s corporate social responsibility objectives more than it fits overall marketing plans and a partnership could be developed on this basis.

145 A good example is the club‟s current primary shirt sponsor Bradford and Bingley.

Mitchell claims that “there is great synergy between the brands”, which is partly down to the community programmes rather than the higher profile elements of the club.

“The partnership with Bradford and Bingley actually dates back to their sponsoring of the Indoor Cricket Centre about four years ago [2006]. I was on the other side of the when that agreement was made and party to all the negotiations around the indoor school and then, two years later, the shirt sponsorship.

“When I was at Bradford and Bingley, we were attracted to the idea of the indoor centre branding as sponsorship. It was a community facility for all kinds of community leagues – women, children, disabled groups, although the staff at Bradford and Bingley do also use it for various functions.

“That first step into branding the indoor school was Bradford and Bingley‟s door into the club. It was case of having an entry level and building on that. They could see it was effective and were tempted to go further. I‟m a firm believer in giving companies a menu of options, or a tiered menu of options and encouraging them to go further. They don‟t feel confident to go in at the top level, so they go in at a lower level and see that it woks. They‟re more likely to take up bigger options later on.”

The primary shirt sponsorship contract was signed at the end of the 2008 season and will run for three years. It is, therefore, a commercially rewarding deal for the club that was developed through the club demonstrating its community commitments rather than, for example, national or international media reach.

Another reason for clear presentation of development plans to sponsors is more practical. If a contract contains incentive clauses that trigger payments according media exposure or sporting success, the sponsor is in a better position to anticipate costs. The sponsor can actually insure against such eventualities, but it would need to supply detailed information to brokers.

146 Figure 8.10. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Future Developments

Figures 8.10 to 8.13 show some of the higher profile club developments, many of which will bring increased media exposure and opportunities for potential sponsors to increase awareness of the sponsorship and direct communication with cricket fans.

Figure 8.11. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Stadium Development 1

147 Figure 8.12. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Stadium Development 2

Figure 8.13. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Stadium Development 3

148 Figure 8.14. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Club Reach

Figure 8.15 is the first in a series of data presentation. This gives a summary of the number of live spectators, members, the socio-economic profile and an overview of the media coverage of the club.

Figure 8.15. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Sport Interest ABC1s

Figure 8.15 shows that among ABC1, the highest income bracket, cricket is one of the most popular sports and is only beaten by and tennis. ABC1s are particular

149 sought after by marketers of such products as financial services, leisure products/activities, cars etc and many are willing to pay a premium to reach this market.

Figure 8.16. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Appeal Of Competitions

The appeal of the various different cricket competitions is presented in Figure 8.16. It shows that Twenty20 has leapt above all the game‟s format with the exception of test cricket.

Figure 8.17. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Cricket Interest By Gender

150 Analysis of cricket fans according to gender is shown in Figure 8.17. Not surprisingly, males have much greater interest in the sport than females. In itself, the chart is unlikely to help to attract sponsors, most would guess at such an outcome, but this is data that sponsors would wish to have before making their decision. In some cases, where products are predominantly aimed at a male audience, such as beer, men‟s clothing etc, the data is reassuring, although the majority might prefer a more even balance.

Figure 8.18. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Cricket Interest By Age

The age profile of cricket fans, as seen in Figure 8.18, is slightly older than the national average. Again, some sponsors will be encouraged by such findings if their products are more targeted to an older audience. Such data also obviously helps cricket rights holders to target relevant brands if they believe that the age profile is deterring brands that market primarily to a younger audience.

151 Figure 8.19. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Cricket Interest By Socio-Economic Group

Cricket fans, as discussed earlier, tend to be from higher socio-economic groups and the difference against the national average is significant.

Figure 8.20. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Cricket Attendance Pattern

Cricket attendance, as seen in Figure 8.20, has grown steadily throughout the decade. This is mainly a reflection of the impact of Twenty20. Indeed Figure 8.21, shows that the

152 growth in attendance is almost entirely the result of Twenty20. 2005 and 2006 saw extra spurts as a result of the dramatic Ashes series between England and Australia in 2005. The effect of the spectacle continued through to the following season.

Figure 8.21. Yorkshire Sponsorship Presentation – Twenty20 Attendance

The use of research is becoming increasingly important in attracting commercial partners. Most major sponsors now employ specialist research agencies to look at every aspect of their sponsorship programme. This includes brand benchmarking, establishing a match between the brand profiles of the rights holder and the brand as well as media and fan demographic evaluation. During the sponsorship process, brands are likely to conduct tracking studies to establish sponsorship awareness and attitudes to the sponsorship and this is followed by return on investment / objectives analysis. It is therefore essential that rights holders learn to speak the language of sponsors and do as much as possible to present research to aid in the decision making process.

Mitchell points out that part of Yorkshire‟s strategy for attracting potential sponsors is to make extensive research data available: “We give them TV figures and inform them about the opportunities to see their branding around the ground, and in newspapers. We are regularly featured on the back pages of the Yorkshire Post and Bradford Telegraph and Argus, large regional papers. It‟s a good

153 chance to expose the sponsors‟ logo. Even the national papers provide exposure as cricket features regularly in the broadsheets.

“We also focus on how many opportunities there will be to expose the logo and also what we can do as an add-on to market their products and services. I must say that when I was at Bradford and Bingley our biggest concerns were column inches and the number of times the logo appeared in local newspapers.”

Community Programme Yorkshire Cricket in the Community, launched in April 2008, is the county‟s strategic programme, which has encouraged the development and sustainability of a comprehensive, countywide infrastructure for cricket in Yorkshire. The programme is designed to guide the work of all involved in the provision of cricket and its related activities, while simultaneously increasing interest in the game and generating more fans and players.

Stewart Regan, chief executive of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, explains the rationale behind the extensive programme: “We cannot work in isolation as a club and are very grateful for the support and help we get from our partner organisations and sponsors, but it is testament to the history, stature and position which the club has in world sport that these organisations, often from completely different sectors of industry, wish to position themselves alongside The Yorkshire County Cricket Club and everything it stands for. Conversely the club cannot ever afford to forget the role it plays in the community, the power it has to positively effect people‟s lives and the responsibilities that go with that

“Yorkshire is a massive county with pockets of affluence, but also where social deprivation exists. 20% of the country‟s 10% most socially deprived areas are situated in the Yorkshire region and sport can play a really positive role amongst groups such as the young, those with disabilities plus black and minority ethnic populations in these areas. In 2008 the activities organized by the Club and the Yorkshire Cricket Board reached over 190,000 people in the Yorkshire region.”

154 Partners Yorkshire Cricket in the Community‟s partnership bodies include:

Table 8.1. Yorkshire Cricket in the Community Partners Yorkshire County Cricket Club Professional Game Yorkshire Cricket Board Recreational Game Yorkshire Women‟s Cricket Association All Women and Girls Yorkshire Schools Cricket Association Age Group Representative Yorkshire Coaches Cricket Association Coaching at all Levels Yorkshire Cricket Association of Cricket Officials Cricket Officials Yorkshire Cricket Board Groundsman Groundsmen Association

Yorkshire Cricket Board The Yorkshire Cricket Board is the body that makes policy for the recreational game of Cricket within Yorkshire. It also applies for all grants that come into the recreational game in Yorkshire and formulates and publishes the Five-Year Strategic Plan, Facilities Strategy and Operational Plans. The YCB aims to promote the game of cricket at all levels through the partnership of the professional and recreational cricketing bodies and other appropriate agencies within the county. The Strategic Plan includes programme management, workforce development, competition management, player development, facilities development, performance management and governance.

Yorkshire Women’s Cricket Association The YWCA is a member organisation of the Yorkshire Cricket Board and is the delivery arm with the responsibility for running the Women‟s and age group County Squads and promoting the women‟s game. The Association also provides support and advice to anyone involved or wanting to get involved in Women‟s Cricket at any level.

Yorkshire Schools Cricket Association The YSCA was formed in 1934 and is a member organisation of the YCB responsible for running the Schools level cricket in the county. The Association also provides support and advice to anyone involved or wanting to get involved in school cricket at any level.

Yorkshire Coaches Cricket Association The YCB Coaches Association is the county body of the ECB Coaches Association and aims to promote the development of coaches and cricket throughout the county. This is

155 the essential body for all coaches to join. The role of the YCB Coach Education Centre Management is to organise, supervise and assess all coach education courses, liaise with the ECB tutors and co-ordinate and oversee the work of 10 local branches.

Yorkshire Cricket Board Association of Cricket Officials The YCBACO, formed in January 2008, has over 750 members making it the largest branch in the country and succeeds previous organisations including the Association of Cricket Umpires and Scorers. As a relatively new organisation it is focusing on building a network of 12 branches in the county and is responsible for the education, development and progression of all umpires and scorers.

Yorkshire Cricket Board Groundsman Association The YCBGA was founded by the YCB, despite there being no national body just for cricket groundsmen as yet. The Association focuses on creating opportunities for club groundsmen through education, courses and equipment to better their skills and the surfaces upon which cricket is played.

Yorkshire Cricket in the Community is an overarching programme that not only encompasses existing initiatives but also instigates new ideas and events. As YCIC expands, it is intended that the programme becomes more focused on a smaller number of core initiatives that deliver the key message of increasing participation and enjoyment of cricket. YCIC has directly reached over 190,000 people (see Table 8.2) in the Yorkshire Community in 2008, providing them with the opportunity to play cricket and develop their skills. This number is set to increase each year as Yorkshire Cricket in the Community is positioned as a leading programme for Community Cricket.

The Yorkshire Region 27.5% of the Lower layer Super Output Areas (LSOAs) in Yorkshire fall in the most deprived 20% of LSOAs in England and 17% fall in the most deprived 10% of LSOAs (Department for Communities and Local Government, 2007) 11% of the Yorkshire region is from black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds. Of that figure 12% are from Indian backgrounds, 29% Pakistani, 2% Bangladeshi and 42% West Indian; all Test Cricket playing nations. 7% of those from BAME backgrounds reside in . There are 1,924 primary and approximately 300 secondary schools in Yorkshire.

156 Cricket In Yorkshire  The cumulative attendance at YCCC matches was 97,853 in 2008  Yorkshire has 756 Affiliated Cricket Clubs including 1,422 senior teams and approximately 480 junior sections making it the world‟s largest Cricket County  Approximately 27,030 people take part in club cricket in the Yorkshire region  There are around 100 leagues, some of which are among the country‟s strongest  There are 77 Focus Clubs in Yorkshire. These clubs, of varying sizes, have junior sections and work within set criteria to increase cricket participation and workforce development, improve the quality and make an impact locally within the community, especially in schools. The Focus Clubs help ensure development activities are being effectively implemented to increase participation  Yorkshire is a region as well as a county and 11% of all cricket clubs and teams across the UK are located in Yorkshire  63 Yorkshire cricket clubs are in the 20% of the region's most socially deprived areas  Yorkshire Cricket through the Yorkshire Cricket Board is serviced by nine Area Cricket Councils and 31 Cricket Development Groups.

Mission Statement The Yorkshire County Cricket Club aims to be the most successful and respected cricket club in the world – both on and off the pitch. This is relevant to Yorkshire Cricket in the Community as it aims to position itself at the „heart of the community‟ and take a pro- active approach to attracting and retaining target customer groups.

Objectives Yorkshire Cricket in the Community aims to:  Promote Cricket – At all levels through partnerships with professional / recreational cricket bodies and other appropriate agencies in Yorks.  Increase Cricket Participation – Among target groups in the Yorkshire area including: Youth, BAME, Disability Cricket, Areas of Social Deprivation (Index of Multiple Deprivation – [IMD] wards), Women and Girls.  Attract More Fans and Players – Increase the presence and enhance the reputation of Yorkshire Cricket in the Community and Yorkshire CCC and subsequently attract more fans and members of the game.  Enhance Workforce Development – Across the Yorkshire region including coaches, umpires, scorers, grounds people and volunteers.

157 Key Strategic Pillars The delivery strategy provides an overarching framework, which identifies three strategic pillars in the portfolio areas of the programme:

Involvement • Increasing participation and opportunity • Enhancing workforce development • Improving the quality of the game and facilities across Yorkshire.

Projects aimed at increasing involvement include:  Bradley and Bingley Indoor Cricket Centre  Pathways to Excellence  Mynahs and Tykes Membership Clubs  Young People‟s Competitions  Bradford Heart of the Community  Yorkshire Player Coaching Academies  Kids for a Quid

Education • Providing learning opportunities • Supporting local education initiatives • Career path planning and performance pathways to develop future opportunities for players and volunteers.

Projects providing an educational resource include:  YCCC Learning Centre  Education Leeds  The Performance Lifestyle Programme  Stadium Days  YCCC School Coaching  Sessions/Assemblies  Partnership Colleges  The Sticky Wicket

158 Social Capital • Contributing to the building of a sustainable local community • Building relationships with families, community, businesses and other agencies • Delivering key messages through partnership with appropriate agencies.

Projects designed to deliver social capital include:  Primary Care Trust  Disability Cricket  BAME Cricket  Women and Girls‟ Cricket  YCCC Learning Centre – Playing for Success  YCCC Learning Centre – Positive Futures

Involvement

Bradford & Bingley Indoor Cricket Centre The Bradford & Bingley Indoor Cricket Centre aims to highlight minority cricket and places particular emphasis on disabled, BAME, and women‟s cricket through specialist leagues, events, open days and activities in the centre. This in turn, enables Yorkshire County Cricket Club to further enhance its reputation as the hub of cricket in Yorkshire. The highly qualified coaching staff are committed to the development of young cricketers whatever their abilities. Specialist and one-on-one coaching, coach education, video analysis, holiday camps and indoor competitions and leagues are held in the Centre along with unique events held by the Yorkshire County Cricket Club and Yorkshire Cricket Board.

Target:  Youth  BAME  Disability Cricket  Areas of Social Deprivation  Women and Girls  All cricket related activity

159 Benefits: • Increase cricket activity in the Yorkshire area • Increase accessibility to the game of cricket at all levels • Improved facilities.

Results  The centre plays host to a number of coaching courses throughout the summer and winter periods and net hire and numbers attending courses are steadily on the increase  24,000 children have been through the Cricket in the Classroom scheme in seven years, 3000 students came in 2008 alone. (See the Yorkshire County Cricket Club Learning Centre page for more details)  Over 10,000 people use the Cricket Centre on an annual basis www.yorkshireccc.com/cricket-centre

Mike Hammond, community affairs manager at Bradford & Bingley explains the company‟s rationale for involvement in the scheme:

“It‟s important that as a locally based business, we support our community. Sponsoring the Indoor Cricket Centre gives us a chance to make a difference to the Club and to people who will be encouraged to use it as part of the initiatives. Bradford & Bingley strongly believes that this type of investment has a positive effect on the area and the people and hence our customers‟ and staff‟s lives.”

Pathways To Excellence The Pathways to Excellence scheme is run by the Yorkshire County Cricket Club, Yorkshire Cricket Board and Yorkshire School‟s Cricket Association and helps see talented players through to County Scholarships and Academy Training. Boys and girls usually enter the scheme at Bronze level (aged 12+) and aim to progress to Gold level. Virtually all Yorkshire‟s county players have progressed through the scheme. There are eight bronze, two silver and one gold centres for boys and four district development centres, one silver, one gold and one elite centre for girls.

Target  Youth  All groups showing potential in their skills and game

160 Benefits • Increase participation and involvement • Create opportunities for talented players • Encourage players to continue their development which may lead to the professional game

Results • 317 boys and 109 girls attended the scheme in 2008 • 10.34% of attendance is from BAME groups

Mynahs And Yorkshire Tykes Membership Clubs Along with a variety of adult memberships, Yorkshire County Cricket Club has two membership clubs for Under 18‟s attracting more young people to watch cricket at Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground and increasing accessibility to the game.

YCCC organise a number of events throughout the year for clubs to increase cricket participation and create a community around the game. This includes Open Days, training sessions and seasonal events.

Mynahs Membership 2008  For children Under 12  £30 for the year  Free entrance to all Yorkshire home matches  Gift Pack  Birthday and Christmas cards  Opportunity to attend Mynahs Open Days and events throughout the year

Yorkshire Tykes Membership 2008  For 12-18 year olds  £30 for the year  Free entrance to all Yorkshire home matches  Discounted coaching sessions at the Bradford & Bingley Indoor Cricket Centre  Opportunity to attend Yorkshire Tykes events held throughout the year.

161 Target  Youth

Benefits • Increases accessibility for young people to the game of cricket • Introduces younger members to cricket which may lead to participation in coaching sessions or them joining a local club • Exclusive opportunities to meet the Yorkshire team or be team mascot which increases interest around the game.

Results • 365 Mynahs Club members • 492 Yorkshire Tykes members • 83 members are female

It is hoped to raise this number by 15% in 2009 through increased activity and promotion in the Yorkshire community. Neil Claxton, a parent of one of the Mynahs members sent the following message to the club in 2008, which demonstrates the power such programmes can deliver:

“Just back from the Mynahs event and the great victory over Durham. I just wanted to say a big thank you to yourself and everyone involved at the club for making it so enjoyable. My son has just collapsed in bed absolutely exhausted, but still has a smile on his face. What a great advert for the club to see so many children having such a good time (not to mention the parents!). The great win afterwards also helped! Once again, many thanks.”

Young People’s Competitions The development and sustainability of youth cricket can be illustrated in the 470 affiliated clubs with junior sections that operate within the Yorkshire Region. The initiatives and competitions, including the club‟s flagship, Pathway‟s to Excellence, are the main vehicles for the development of youth cricket and encourage increased and new participation in cricket from a young age across the county. There are numerous programmes for young cricket in Yorkshire, many of which YCCC is involved in.

162 Opportunities

 Enjoy Cricket – Focuses on the young beginner and in 2008 more than 100 sessions were held involving 3000 young people  CitiCricket – Formerly Street Cricket, funded by the Lord Taverners, which focuses on young beginners in inner-city areas  PESSCL (PE School Sport Club Links) – Funding and organisation of school assemblies and visits linking the clubs with the schools  A Chance to Shine – Aims to provide local schools with quality coaching visits and get children to play competitive cricket  Cricket in the Classroom – Bradford & Bingley Indoor Cricket Centre scheme for Key Stage Two (the term for the four years of schooling in maintained schools in normally known as Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6, when pupils are aged between seven and eleven) children  Bradford & Bingley Indoor Cricket Centre – Leagues and Coaching Opportunities  Junior Coaching Programme– Through the Yorkshire Cricket Board Coaching Association (YCBCA)

Primary School Competitions  Asda – Year 6 Mixed, Year 5 Mixed and Girl‟s competitions  Drax Cup Competition – Yorkshire initiative for U9s – currently the largest in the country

Secondary School Competitions  Inter-Cricket – U13 and U15 Girls and Boys competitions  David English Bunbury U12 Competition – Hardball competition  Yorkshire Post U13 Competition – Hardball competition  Daily Telegraph 20-20 U15 Competition – Hardball competition

Club Junior Cricket  MCC Spirit of Cricket U13 Club Competition – National Hardball competition  Portman U15 Junior Club Competition – National Hardball competition  Junior Leagues  Local Cup Competitions

163 District Cricket  District Area Competitions - Link between Club and School Cricket and County Age Group Representative Cricket  Lord Taverners – U11, 13, 14 and 15 Hardball Yorkshire District Representative competitions  Joe Lumb U17 Representative Trophy – Hardball competition

Regional Cricket  Match programmes – North, East, South and West regions

Representative Cricket  YCB Age Group Squads – including U16, U17 and A and B teams at U11, 12, 13, 14 and 15  White Rose Inter-league KnockOut Cup – Representative cricket for U21s

Drax Cup The Programme The Drax Cup is a Yorkshire initiative and the largest Under 9‟s competition in the country, which encourages interest in cricket from a young age. The Finals are held at Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground and are a culmination of three months of competitions that involved 270 schools in 2008. This allows children the opportunity to tread the same turf as the Yorkshire county and international cricketers including Michael Vaughan and Kevin Pieterson.

Target  Youth

Benefits • Encourage participation from a young age • Provide children with the opportunity to play at Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground • Increase accessibility to cricket and sport

Results • In 2008, 3000 children from 270 schools took part in the competition; three times as many as in 2007 • 40 children take part in the Finals

164 Peter Emery, production director, of sponsor Drax Power says the event is both important to the company‟s corporate social responsibility plans and for the life skills development among children: “Youth sport and education are two important themes of our community relations programme. This competition is an ideal way of bringing them together and enabling children to enjoy sport and through this they learn valuable lessons about supporting each other and taking responsibility.”

Bradford Heart Of The Community The Bradford Heart of the Community project began in January 2008 with the appointment of community liaison officer, Shiv Krishan, with the objective of developing YCCC‟s involvement in the Bradford area and improving links with the varied supporters of the game. The project focuses largely on Asian communities and aims to break down barriers, welcoming the young and old to get involved with Yorkshire Cricket and promote the region‟s „B-Active‟ campaign. Employed by Yorkshire County Cricket Club, the community liaison officer role works in line with the Yorkshire Cricket Board and Bradford City Council objectives to help deliver an integrated plan.

Target  Youth  BAME  Areas of Social Deprivation (IMD Wards)

Benefits • Increase cricket participation and involvement amongst Asian communities, areas of social deprivation, women and girls and youth • Increase accessibility to cricket • Enhance educational and skills development opportunities along side local school and council initiatives • Help improve cricket and sporting facilities in the local area • Increase coach education opportunities • Create player pathways in line with ECB/YCB initiatives • Create reliable source of volunteers and support staff to develop the cricket workforce.

165 Bradford Community • Bradford lies within Yorkshire's 20% most deprived LSOA in the region • The ethnic minority population in Bradford accounts for approximately 18% (87,150) of the district's total population. • 86% of the ethnic minority population is of Asian origin • A further 7% are of Afro-Caribbean origin. • By the year 2011 it is estimated that the district's ethnic minority population will form 26% of the district's total population. (Bradford City Council, 2008)

Results Since it‟s beginning, Bradford Heart of the Community has achieved a number of significant outcomes: • Directly reached 1,084 people since January 2008 • Manningham Cricket Centre - Coaching Sessions, open days and appointment of 15 young people working to inspire younger players, most of which played in the Yorkshire schools U14 and U15. 500 young people reached • Development of four new junior teams • Level one coaching courses, held at Belle Vue Girls School at a reduced cost, are allowing accessible coaching for the local community. 138 people took advantage of this in 2008 • Young leaders award courses • Visits to Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground have allowed young players to see their heroes including local players Adil Rashid and Ajmal Shahzad. 386 people took advantage of this in 2008. • Drax Cup – 24 Bradford schools took part in the Drax Cup in 2008; five times the number in 2007. Bradford Moor made it through to the play offs for the Finals • Girls Cricket – Allerton Primary School represented Bradford in the Girls Kwik Cricket Festival at Castleford CC. Belle Vue Girls School has included indoor nets in its new sports centre and has embarked on a 10 week Cricket in the Classroom programme developing girls‟ cricket • Park Avenue Cricket Ground – Primary School cricket festivals and Enjoy Cricket sessions have helped develop an area that has been heavily associated with crime. 312 people were involved in the Enjoy Cricket sessions in 2008.

166 Taj Butt, development officer – Equalities and Community Cohesion, City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council, points to the power of sport in helping to meet social objectives: “ We are delighted with the impact that the project had on communities that are traditionally hard to reach. The project is able to use the passion for Cricket that exists in the target communities. In 2009 we look forward to continuing our partnership with YCCC by expanding on the pilot scheme.”

The Bradford Heart of the Community project will continue in 2009, with increased direction from the YCB ensuring resources are being used effectively across the area. The role will become more community-focused and work inline with the YCB‟s strategic development plan. Throughout 2009, Yorkshire Cricket in the Community aims to identify opportunities to repeat the project in other areas of the region to increase participation and cricket development.

Yorkshire Player Coaching Academies Yorkshire Cricket in the Community supports a number of coaching courses run by Yorkshire CCC players in addition to the player pathways and multitude of coaching courses available throughout the county. While these courses do not run in line with the YCB Pathways to Excellence, they provide additional skill development opportunities and allow increased access into cricket.

The Craig White Cricket Academy Named after former club captain, The Craig White Cricket Academy offers cricket players of all ages and abilities professional cricket coaching from qualified experts in order to improve all aspects of a cricketer‟s game. The Academy provides a wide range of services including one-to-one coaching, school coaching, master class sessions and specialist coaching covering the various aspects of the game.

Craig White, Simon Guy and , all Yorkshire players, provide coaching sessions throughout the summer and winter period.

Pro-Coach Cricket Academy The Pro-Coach Cricket Academy was founded by and Chris Taylor in 2005 and provides cricket coaching in Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Cheshire. The Academy now

167 involves a number of Yorkshire players and coaches and provides elite, premier, key skills, school and one-on-one coaching.

Target  Youth

Benefits • Additional coaching opportunities for young people in Yorkshire • Allow children to be coached by their heroes and current professional cricket players.

Kids for a Quid Kids for a Quid (slang for £1) is a relatively promotion in English sport. At YCCC, it offers schools and cricket clubs in the Yorkshire region tickets for £1 per child. This scheme is used to encourage more children and groups to attend matches at Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground and increase interest in cricket.

Target  Youth

Benefits • Increase accessibility for young people to enjoy cricket • Create good relationships with schools and clubs in the Yorkshire area • Increase attendance at Yorkshire home matches

Results • 1696 children took advantage of the Kids for a Quid scheme in 2008 over 10 matches

Yorkshire Cricket in the Community aims to increase this number in 2009 to ensure more children are being provided with the opportunity to enjoy cricket.

168 Education

Learning Centre Yorkshire County Cricket Club hosts its own Learning Centre on the ground floor of the East Stand. The modern information and communication technology (ICT) suite and classrooms deliver „Playing for Success‟, „Positive Futures‟ and the „Cricket in the Classroom‟ educational courses and are also used by staff and players on a daily basis.

Playing for Success Playing for Success is the flagship „out of school hours‟ learning programme supported by the Department for Children, Schools and Families. Its key features are: • Part of a network of 162 learning centres in the country, including 10 cricket centres • 10 week programme – 120 mixed gender students from local Leeds schools per week – three courses per year – 360 students • No cost for schools and transport is provided • The aim is to raise achievement in literacy, numeric and ICT skills for children who would benefit most from such an opportunity • Funded by Education Leeds, DCSF, and an „in kind‟ Yorkshire CCC contribution

Positive Futures Positive Futures is a UK government Home Office funded learning course, key features include: • Targeting Year 6 pupils from Leeds schools deemed to be at risk of offending • 36 pupils per year • Runs each week throughout term time • Self-sufficient in transport and teaching.

Cricket in the Classroom Cricket in the Classroom is a project run at the Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground, which invites children to participate in a combination of sports, games and educational lessons. Both schools and individual children are encouraged to join the free sessions which include a tour of the stadium. Key features of the programme include: • 24,000 children in 7 years • 50 Leeds schools per year • £100,000 a year from • Schools fund transport • Cricket + classroom experience for primary school children.

169 Target  Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3 (the legal term for the three years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9, when pupils are aged between 11 and 14) pupils particularly from the Leeds area.  Schools from across Yorkshire  Schools from Areas of Social Deprivation in Leeds (The Learning Centre reaches BAME, pupils with disabilities and girls simultaneously.)

Results The combined delivery of both cricket coaching and tuition has succeeded in raising pupils‟ confidence and ability and seen over 3396 pupils through the schemes in 2008.

2009 As the Yorkshire County Cricket Club Learning Centre sees over 3000 children through its doors each year, it is a great opportunity for a potential partner to reach Under 16‟s in Yorkshire. It is hoped that a new Learning Centre partner will be attracted in 2009 to help enhance the programmes and provide additional resources.

Furthermore, it is hoped that a Mobile Van will be implemented so that the programmes can be taken out to school classrooms and playgrounds around the county.

“ When I asked one girl why she enjoyed coming to the centre she replied that it made her feel famous,” says John Bedford, Learning Centre manager.

“This sums up the excitement experienced by pupils who attend the Yorkshire County Cricket Club Learning Centre at the Headingley Carnegie Stadium. The centre provides a great opportunity to engage pupils in their learning and it is a brilliant place to work.”

Education Leeds

Yorkshire County Cricket Club has worked closely with Education Leeds throughout 2008 on a number of initiatives including its 100% attendance campaign: „Give it 100%‟.

Through rewarding children who achieve 100% attendance, Yorkshire County Cricket Club aims to help promote the values of education and encourage more children to

170 invest in their future. The relationship with Education Leeds has developed immensely and there are plans to continue with existing initiatives in addition to supporting anti- bullying campaigns.

Target  Youth

Results • 150 children received tickets to Yorkshire County Cricket Club matches for good attendance. • Over 24,000 pupils achieved 100% school attendance for the month of March 2008. This helped many of the schools, 230 primary schools and 38 high schools, in the city to raise their attendance significantly. Consequently, the city‟s overall attendance rate achieved its target set by the government for 2007 -2008. This has continued the upward trend of recent years.

2009 Yorkshire County Cricket Club has been invited to form an official partnership with Education Leeds, Leeds Rugby and Leeds United to create a Youth programme for young people with behaviour problems. The 30-week programme will be a joint initiative that uses the power of sport to deliver key messages along with the West Yorkshire Police, Fire and Rescue, Youth Services, Study Support and Primary Care Trust. In addition, it is intended that the programme be extended to reward school children showing potential at school but with a mediocre interest in sport to encourage them further. As an extension of the relationship with Education Leeds, Yorkshire County Cricket Club is improving relationships with Education Bradford, county Local Education Authorities (LEAs) and Club and School Sport Partnerships to roll out reward and recognition schemes across the county.

“Yorkshire Cricket has been a main contributor to the success of the Attendance Champions „Give it 100%‟ Competition,” says John Normington, Attendance Champions co-coordinator, Education Leeds.

“The success of this initiative is due to the fabulous Business Partners, who give their time, expertise and resources willingly and the support from Yorkshire Cricket is greatly valued. Our joint work is showing great benefits for the communities in Leeds and the

171 initiatives are having a positive impact for young people and families. This has only been possible with the support of Yorkshire County Cricket Club as one of our business partners.”

An example of how the scheme works concerns Alwoodley Primary School in Leeds. Through gaining 100% attendance during the month of March 2008, Alwoodley Primary School was awarded with a class visit to a Yorkshire match. The pupils attended on Tuesday 1st July and a classroom and cricket session was organised before the class were able to enjoy the match.

The Performance Lifestyle Programme Yorkshire County Cricket Club actively encourages and supports all its players from Academy to 1st team, to continue with education and develop a career outside of the game. Yorkshire County Cricket Club Academy recognises that there will be a diverse range of issues affecting players, some directly relating to the game (e.g. awareness of recreational and performance enhancing drugs), others will be on the periphery of a player‟s experience (e.g. balancing educational and cricket commitments). Yorkshire County Cricket Club aims to provide all the support possible to meet the players‟ needs. Players have one-to-one support throughout the summer and winter months, and can call upon any of the coaching staff at any time for help. All the coaches are committed to ensuring a player‟s lifestyle, education and overall welfare is supported throughout their time with the club.

In addition to the individual support, YCCC run an educational workshop programme where players are collectively challenged and exposed to a variety of „lifestyle based issues‟ designed to support their development within the game. These include workshops on self-awareness, communication and interpersonal skills, media training, self-organisation and financial management amongst others. For some sessions parents will be invited to ensure integrated support for the player.

Target  Academy Players

Benefits • Provide support for players to develop life, educational and career opportunities • Quality programme that improves the quality of the team environment.

172 Stadium Days - A Day In The Life Of Headingley Carnegie A Day in the Life of Headingley Carnegie was initially developed to engage young volunteers, providing them with an experience that may lead to volunteering opportunities and ideas for potential career paths. Since then, the scheme has developed to reward school children for good behaviour and encourage those on Certificates of Personal Effectiveness and similar awards.

Case Study – Young Leaders Thirty Young Leaders from the Sheffield area came to take part in a stadium tour on Monday 30th June for the LVCC Yorkshire v Durham match. The group was split into five groups of six and led by volunteers from Yorkshire Cricket Board. The groups took part in the following activities which provided them with an understanding of match day activities and taught them about the variety of jobs involved in sport management and events: • Photography • Players Tunnel • Warm Up • Indoor Cricket Centre • Cricket in the Classroom in the Learning Centre • Stewarding and Control Room • Scoring and Announcing • Press, Media and Radio • Match analysis with the YCCC team.

Target  Youth

Benefits • Increase cricket participation and involvement • Increase educational and career opportunities for young people in the county • Increase Yorkshire Cricket relationships with educational bodies and organisations.

Results • 40 Young Leaders and 25 School Children • YCCC received 100% positive feedback from the pupils and there was particularly positive feedback regarding the stewarding and control session. The pupils didn‟t realise

173 how much planning and organisation was required to run an event and as a result of the day, realised the vast array of jobs involved in sport.

2009 YCCC will be increasing the number of stadium visits in 2009 for young leaders in the county and is in discussions with Young Enterprise to develop the stadium tours for young people on both match days and non-match days. The programme will include guest lectures, set tasks and provide an insight into match day activities. In turn this will encourage young people to think about potential careers in the sports industry and cricket in particular and develop future workforce

YCCC School Coaching Sessions And Assemblies Throughout 2008, the Yorkshire Cricket in the Community programme has visited a number of schools and clubs to enhance the work delivered by Focus Clubs and the Yorkshire Cricket Board. The programme has been extremely successful in promoting the game of cricket to school children and the appearances of mascots Max and Molly Mynah have increased interest in the Mynahs membership club greatly. Resources have been limited for this programme and only a small number of visits have been achieved, however, this is expected to increase in 2009 through increased support from partners and developing relationships with the YCB.

Target  Youth  BAME (dependent on school location)  Socially Deprived Areas

Benefits • Increase cricket participation and involvement • Promote Mynahs and Tykes Membership Clubs to children across Yorkshire • Increase accessibility to cricket for young people

Results • 150 pupils reached in 2008

Case Study – Spofforth C of E School Assembly On Tuesday 15th July, Yorkshire County Cricket Club took Max Mynah along to Spofforth C of E Primary School in North Yorkshire. Learning Centre Manager, John Bedford, delivered an inspiring assembly discussing the uniqueness of Headingley

174 Carnegie Cricket Ground, the difference between used and brand new cricket balls, allowed children to try on cricket kit belonging to some of the past legends of the game and answered questions on cricketing terms. Max Mynah also helped with the activities and demonstrated techniques for the children.

“We were delighted to receive a visit from Yorkshire CCC to our recent school assembly,” says Jane Turner, head teacher at Spofforth C of E School. “The children really enjoyed the fun activities and loved meeting the mascot, Max Mynah. We really appreciate our strong links with Yorkshire Cricket and find it an excellent way to promote healthy lifestyles and sport with our pupils.”

Partnership Colleges Yorkshire County Cricket Club has a number of partnerships with Higher Education Colleges so as to develop links with the local community and encourage more people to enjoy cricket. The partnerships aim to develop educational opportunities while simultaneously creating new opportunities and research projects. Partner colleges: Hull College, Thomas Danby (Leeds), Park Lane College (Leeds), Grimsby Institute, Bradford College, Doncaster College.

Each of these colleges is located within the 20% most deprived areas in Yorkshire and the Humber and, therefore, provide opportunity to engage those considered as socially deprived. In addition, the colleges serve areas with large BAME communities.

Target  Youth  Areas of Social Deprivation  BAME

Benefits • Increase educational and career pathways for young people • Create new opportunities for students across Yorkshire in line with course objectives • Increase cricket participation and involvement • Develop relationships with educational institutions across Yorkshire.

Results While the partnerships have helped establish a number of opportunities and developed excellent working relationships with the colleges, there have been no projects

175 implemented to date. Secure plans have been made for 2009 to see some projects initiated which look to be extremely successful.

2009 As the college partnerships develop, it is hoped that projects and schemes will be initiated to provide students with an enhanced learning experience and create new interest in the game. Furthermore, community projects may be instigated to extend the Yorkshire Cricket in the Community portfolio further.

“The partnerships provide us with a great opportunity to combine sport with education,” says Stewart Regan, YCCC chief executive.

“We will be working closely with the colleges on a number of projects, especially with their sports students. Sometimes young people might not listen to politicians or so called experts, but they might listen to athletes and sporting icons. We can help deliver the message about the importance of being healthy and having fun at the same time.”

An example of how the project works concerns Doncaster College. On Wednesday 4th June 2008, Yorkshire County Cricket Club launched a new partnership with Doncaster College to raise the profile of cricket in Doncaster. The partnership involves the Club‟s Academy working closely with the college providing opportunities and varying projects for youngsters in South Yorkshire. YCCC Chief Executive Stewart Regan, College Principal Rowland Foote, and fast bowler Deon Kruis launched the partnership at Doncaster‟s Keepmoat Stadium.

“We are very proud to be entering into a partnership with a prestigious organisation such as Yorkshire County Cricket Club, says Roland Foote, Doncaster College principal.

“Together we can improve what is on offer for young people across the region. Not only can we benefit the lives of young people but there is a possibility of using our world class digital technology to help the Club‟s professionals with their game. It is an exciting time for both organisations.”

The Sticky Wicket In May 2008, YCCC joined a partnership with Hipperholme and Lightcliffe School and Sports College to re-brand their school dining hall with a cricket theme. „The Sticky

176 Wicket‟ was launched on Tuesday 10th June and Deon Kruis, Yorkshire bowler, officially opened the dining hall and provided cricket coaching for some of the students. The re- brand aims to provide children with, and encourage them to eat, healthy options on-site rather than using off-site fast food stores. Simultaneously, the initiative educates them about cricket and encourages interest in the sport.

The Sticky Wicket includes the following features: • Designated areas and menus named after cricketing terms • Signs, banners, paintings, pictures of players, rules of cricket around walls • Cricket memorabilia • Twenty20 kit staff uniforms • Reward schemes for choosing healthy eating including free tickets to watch the cricket, coaching with YCCC coaches plus other prizes.

Target Audience  Youth (11-18 mixed comprehensive students)

Benefits • Encourage children to make healthy dietary choices • Increase engagement in sport either through participation or attendance at games • Create career opportunities and pathways for students • Improve YCCC relationships with educational institutions.

Results  1200 pupils reached

Michael Horrocks, school manager, Hipperholme and Lightcliffe School and Sports College comments on the scheme:

“Since The Sticky Wicket‟s launch in the spring of 2008, student take up has increased significantly and feedback on their view of the new service is very positive. We would like to thank YCCC for their invaluable support and we look forward to the further support of students, their parents and staff in ensuring the new venture is a success as it is only with this that we will be able to continue to provide a high quality and unique catering service.”

177 Social Capital A large number of Yorkshire County Cricket Club‟s projects sit within more than one portfolio area of the programme. For example: Playing for Success helps benefit young people in the Yorkshire community by helping increase their interest in education and helping them create career paths for later life.

Positive Futures helps those likely to offend to improve their future prospects and reduce the risk of them being involved in crime; and the Performance Lifestyle Programme ensures that young, talented cricketers are skilled in a range of areas to reduce the risk of them being unemployed after a cricket career.

Primary Care Trust Yorkshire County Cricket Club works in partnership with the Leeds Primary Care Trust (PCT) to educate the people of Yorkshire about health initiatives, care and services through sport and the game of cricket. In turn it is hoped to improve the health and quality of life of fans, encourage a healthier community and essentially generate increased attendance at Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground.

An example of the type of initiative run is the „Falls Awareness‟ event run on Tuesday 24th June 2008. Three older people‟s networks from across Leeds visited Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground to take part in a series of activities, aimed at preventing falls. An „Extend‟ taster session was provided which comprised a form of muscle strengthening exercise for the elderly. A Tai Chi demonstration taught gentle movements that have been proven to help with balance and body awareness. In addition, Yorkshire County Cricket Club coaches gave a „Kwik Cricket‟ session, featuring tips that the professionals use in order to stay on top of their game. The sessions took place in the Bradford & Bingley Indoor Cricket Centre, where a number of stalls providing information and advice on other useful services were also set up. Guests were also treated to lunch and a tour of Headingley‟s prestigious ground.

Target  Elderly Community Groups and Networks

Results  75 elderly people.reached

178 “The event was a huge success,” says Alison Giles, Community Marketing manager, Yorkshire County Cricket Club.

“We really hope we have helped some of the older people in our community to keep fit and active and to have fun while doing so. It was great to see all the older people taking part - they all had a fantastic day and especially enjoyed the tour.”

Amanda Douglas, Service Development manager for Older People at Leeds PCT felt that the event was valuable for a number of reasons:

“Exercise is vital for older people to improve their well-being, build their confidence and help prevent social isolation. Falling doesn‟t have to be an inevitable part of growing older and through this event, we hope to provide information and advice on the services the PCT and other organisations can offer, to help older people stay healthy and happy. We‟re really grateful for Yorkshire County Cricket Club‟s hospitality. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves and all expressed to me how kind all the staff were. It was a very special day.”

Around 17% of residents in Leeds are elderly. Due to transportation limitations, the event was open to Leeds based network groups, however, it is hoped this pilot study can be extended in 2009 to reach those areas in Yorkshire with higher elderly populations.

Beeston Smoke Free Homes Cricket Festival Another initiative aimed at addressing health issues was the Beeston Smoke Free Homes Cricket Festival. On Tuesday 19th August 2008, the Primary Care Trust, in association with Yorkshire County Cricket Club, hosted a Cricket Fun Day at Crossflats Park in Beeston, Leeds to promote a major Smoke Free Homes campaign.

Yorkshire cricketer Azeem Rafiq supported the event and, along with coaches from the Yorkshire Cricket Board, played Kwik Cricket and provided coaching tips. The campaign, ran alongside a similar initiative in Lahore, Pakistan, spearheaded by the PCT at the request of the Institute of Public Health in Lahore. The focus was mainly on children who suffer most through breathing in second-hand smoke, and was designed to educate people on the dangers of smoking and outline how they can achieve gold in the smoke-

179 free homes challenge. As part of the smoke free homes challenge, householders are encouraged to go for gold by signing up to the following steps: Step one – Promise to never smoke in the presence of children. Step two – Promise to limit smoking to one well-ventilated room and never to smoke in the presence of children. Step three – Going for Gold. Promise to make the house totally smoke free at all times.

Target  Youth  BAME particularly South East Asian communities – National research indicates that there is a higher level of smoking prevalence within this group  Areas of Social Deprivation

Results • 200 people were in attendance at the event • It is hoped that the findings from this project will help develop regional and national health policy

Disability Cricket Yorkshire Cricket in the Community is committed to include people with disabilities in the game of cricket as players, officials, coaches and administrators. Disabled cricket includes blind people and visually impaired, deaf people and the hearing impaired, people with physical disability and people with learning disability. The YCB and Federation of Disability Sports Organisations (Yorkshire) formed a disability cricket forum whose role is to: • Increase disability awareness • Increase participation and opportunity for people with disabilities in the game • Establish a forum for an exchange of ideas

Throughout 2008 a large number of development programmes were put in place to include all aspects of Disability Cricket.

Results

Physical & Learning The two County Physical & Learning sides have continued to progress well in 2008, playing hard and softball cricket. The soft ball development side won the county group

180 and are due to play the play off in 2009. The development structure has proved very successful in 2008.

27 schools took part in three festivals in South Yorkshire. Specialist schools in West Yorkshire have benefited from a more structured approach to coaching and through the Chance to Shine programme at St Lawrence CC, inclusion of coaching for Specialist Schools was the first in the county.

North Yorkshire has only a small number of specialist schools but held one festival involving varying levels of ability.

Deaf Cricket continues to allow players to be included at mainstream levels. There are plans to try to develop a regional or district team.

Blind Cricket Further development of , through links with Action for Blind Sport and the Northern Regional Blind Cricket Development Officer, has enabled a better inclusion of players. Blind Cricket has been delivered to six centres across the county through a programme with Action for Blind Sport and while there were plans for a culmination festival at Headingley this was, unfortunately, rained off. There are plans to repeat the delivery and festival in 2009.

Table Cricket The Table Cricket National Regional Tournament was held at Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground with six schools invited. John Jamieson‟s School were the Yorkshire representatives to the National competition at Lords on Monday 8th June and were supported by Yorkshire County Cricket Club in association with Seabrook‟s Crisps.

181 BAME Communities There are many opportunities for the development of young, black, minority ethnic cricketers and those from Inner City areas in Yorkshire. Thanks to specific funding streams, the following BAME/Inner City Development Centres have been established:  Bradford (3)  Dewsbury / Batley  Halifax  Huddersfield  Hull  Leeds / Keighley (3)  Middlesbrough  Rotherham  Sheffield  Wakefield

The most promising youngsters are given the opportunity to partake in full county trial systems and/or District Cricket and to join the Pathways to Excellence scheme. Other players are linked to local clubs. During 2008, BAME cricket has grown significantly, developing existing, and providing new, opportunities across Yorkshire. Each of the BAME community cricket initiatives educates and creates opportunity and life skills to help participants improve quality of life. New junior sections, coaches and facilities have been developed throughout the year ensuring that cricket is increasingly accessible to the BAME community and creating the next generation of players for many areas.

Target  BAME  Youth  Women and Girls  Areas of Social Deprivation

182 Results Significant achievements in 2008 have included:  Initiation of the Bradford Heart of the Community project and the appointment of a Community Liaison Officer  UKCC Level 1&2 certificate courses run at the Zara Centre in Bradford allowing increased accessibility for BAME communities  The Carlton Bolling Centre acquired the use of Laisterdyke Cricket Ground to increase junior participation. The new facility will also be a venue for the development of a Bradford District Women & Girls section  Carr Manor Centre and Leeds Caribbean‟s have partnered and created links with feeder primary schools. The centre attendees are multicultural, engaging all communities and the coaching staff have developed in their quality of delivery and attracted members of the Jewish community. The improved development has enabled the club to increase participation and they now have teams at U9‟s, U11‟s, U13‟s, U15‟s, U17‟s, plus three senior teams. The Club has also acquired five new coaches to deal with the increased participation  Batley/Dewsbury Centre has developed its coaching and organised proficiency schemes for fifty U9‟s boys. The Al-Hikmah Centre has been acquired as a new venue that was opened by Dickie Bird on July 16th  The Hamara Centre has been a huge benefit to the Cross Flatts Park community in South Leeds and despite the attendance being small, the programme has been well organised. They have developed a partnership with The Primary Care Trust where cricket has been used as a vehicle to promote anti-smoking and healthy life styles  Leeds Interfaith Cricket Day on Sunday June 15th 2008 was, reportedly, a huge success. Participants were made up of teams from four faiths with special invited guests. More events will be organised to help promote healthy lifestyles and build partnerships within the communities. The programme was sponsored by “O2, it‟s your community” for £1000  BAME Open Days – Two Open Days to matches at Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground were held in 2008 providing the BAME community the opportunity to watch professional cricket. 368 people took advantage of the scheme in 2008 and there are plans to continue this for 2009.

183 Women And Girls The Yorkshire Women‟s Cricket Association, in conjunction with the YCB, works to promote, encourage and extend women and girls‟ cricket at all levels, providing new opportunities for players and supporting them through player pathways. The Yorkshire‟s Women‟s County Squads include Senior Women‟s, Development, U17, U15 and U13 and four Women & Girls Development Groups run District level competitions at U11, U13 and U15 level.

Target  Women and Girls  BAME  Youth Areas of Social Deprivation

Results The Yorkshire Women‟s County squads had a successful 2008 and in particular the Women‟s Senior Squad was named Division 3 LV Women‟s County Champions 2008 and the U13‟s made it through to the National Finals against Devon. A number of the senior squad achieved representative honours during the year including , Yorkshire Women‟s Captain, who was named Player of the Series against India and scored 5 for 25 in the defeat of South Africa by 255 runs; the best bowling figures by an England player, male or female at Lords in an ODI. In addition Rochelle Petty (YCCC Academy Member), Salliann Briggs and Danielle Hazell were selected for the England Academy.

During 2008, North Yorkshire focused on getting more girls playing cricket in schools and linking into local clubs. A team from the Harrogate area successfully won through to the National ASDA Kwik Cricket Final where they received the Spirit of Cricket Award. The Association is seeking to use this momentum to increase numbers attending the winter coaching offered through the YCB Pathways scheme. East Yorkshire received an „Awards for All‟ grant enabling them to purchase equipment and employ coaches to deliver regular sessions in schools. It is hoped this will lead to an increase in the number of girls attending winter training sessions and joining clubs. In South Yorkshire, Katherine Brunt (UKCC Level 2 qualified coach) has been appointed as a „Chance to Shine‟ coach targeting schools in the Doncaster area where she works closely with coach James Ward. This will lead to the setting up of at least two new girls‟ teams and should stimulate women‟s cricket in the area. West Yorkshire hosted a team from Ireland

184 and toured to . Ilkley CC ran a girls‟ taster session, which saw a large number in attendance. The Association ran a number of coaching centres during the winter and it is hoped this will lead to the instigation of at least two more women‟s teams in 2009. Also in West Yorkshire, Bradford Ladies CC are working with Shiv Krishan, YCCC‟s Community Liaison Officer, at Zara Sports Centre to increase the number of junior girls from ethnic minority communities getting involved in cricket.

The plan for 2009 is to link into the wider networks across Bradford to provide even more girls with the opportunity to participate in cricket. All District groups are looking to work even closer with the YCB Cricket Development managers to broaden their networks to encourage more clubs to set up girls and women‟s sections.

Women‟s / girls cricket in Yorkshire includes: • 13 Female Affiliated Clubs in Yorkshire • 34 Female Senior teams (including non-affiliated) • 30 Female Junior Club teams (U13-U15) • 23 Female Umpires • 67 Female Coaches • 12 District Squads • 5 County Age Group Teams (including development squad and senior county squad)

2009 2009 has the potential to be a productive and exciting year for women‟s cricket with the ICC Women‟s World Cup held in Australia in March followed by the Women‟s Twenty20 World Cup during June running alongside the men‟s World Cup in England. The increased profile provides a great opportunity to raise participation and through working in partnership with cricketing bodies and organisations, women‟s cricket in Yorkshire can be taken forward. YWCA will be working closely with the YCB and YCCC to use these events as a catalyst, encouraging as many women and girls as possible to get involved in cricket.

The objective is for the County squads to be recognised as the best in the country at all age levels. In order to make this happen there is a need to attract the best coaches to what are currently voluntary positions. Being able to offer YWCA coaches Personal and Professional Development support is key to making the roles more attractive. There is

185 also a need to increase the amount of sport science support and fitness advice offered to players.

186 Table 8.2. Yorkshire Cricket In The Community Outcomes Event Name Location Number Teams BAME Disabled Female Indoor Cricket Centre Bradford and Bingley Indoor Cricket Centre 10,000 l l M Pathways to Excellence Yorkshire region 426 36 109 Mynahs and Tykes Membership Yorkshire County Cricket Club 857 l l 83 Young People’s Competitions Enjoy Cricket Yorkshire region 3000 l M CitiCricket Yorkshire region 707 l 100 PESSCL Yorkshire region 2600 l 900 A Chance to Shine Yorkshire region 4080 l M Asda Kwik Cricket Yorkshire region 8820 980 l 315 603 Drax Cup Yorkshire region 3000 273 l M Inter-Cricket Yorkshire region 1140 190 l 540 David English Bunbury U12 Competition Yorkshire region 1560 104 l Yorkshire Post U13 Competition Yorkshire region 1980 132 l Daily Telegraph 20-20 U15 Competition Yorkshire region 1515 101 l MCC Spirit of Cricket U13 Club Competition Yorkshire region 2640 176 l Portman U15 Junior Club Competition Yorkshire region 2610 174 l Junior Leagues and Local Cup Competitions Yorkshire region 5700 380 l M District Cricket Yorkshire region 1300 102 l 450 Lord Taveners U14 Competition Yorkshire region 1815 121 l Joe Lumb U17 Representative Trophy Yorkshire region 270 18 l Regional Cricket Yorkshire region 270 18 l M YCB Age Group Squads Yorkshire region 300 20 l 75 White Rose Inter-League Knock Out Competition Yorkshire region 210 14 l Bradford Heart of the Community Bradford 1084 l l M Kids for a Quid Yorkshire County Cricket Club 1696 l l M Yorkshire County Cricket Club Learning Centre Yorkshire County Cricket Club 3396 130 l 139 Education Leeds Leeds 150 l l M Stadium Days - A Day in the Life of Headingley Carnegie Yorkshire County Cricket Club 65 l l M YCCC School Coaching Sessions and Assemblies Yorkshire region 150 l l M The Sticky Wicket Halifax 1200 l l M Primary Care Trust Yorkshire County Cricket Club 275 l l M BAME - Specific Projects Yorkshire region 368 l l M Disabled Cricket Yorkshire region 92 2 l 92 M Women and Girls Yorkshire region 1305 35 l l 1305 Senior Cricket Yorkshire region 21330 1422 l l 510 Adult YCCC Membership Yorkshire region 8000 l l M Attendance at YCCC games Yorkshire County Cricket Club 97853 l l M TOTAL Yorkshire region 191,764

187 The Game Plan For 2009 The Yorkshire Cricket in the Community programme has been hugely successful for its first year of existence as an integrated plan between the Yorkshire County Cricket Club and the Yorkshire Cricket Board. 191,764 people in the Yorkshire region were reached in 2008, which has helped increase interest and involvement in cricket. In 2009, Yorkshire Cricket in the Community aims to advance the programme so that all sectors of the community are reached. Simultaneously, the community programme must support the Yorkshire region and, therefore, more outreach programmes are being explored. In order to attract more fans and members to the game in 2009, Yorkshire Cricket in the Community aims to: • Increase the number of people reached by 5% to 193,681 people • Increase Yorkshire County Cricket Club membership figures by 15% • Increase the take up of Kids for a Quid offer by 15%

The aim is also to improve the quality of cricket provision in the county as per the YCB Development Plan and it is hoped that successful pilot studies will be replicated across the county to specifically target highlighted groups. While partnerships and projects will be developed and expanded individually, the YCIC will focus on five main areas in 2009:

Charitable Status Charitable status is currently being discussed for the YCIC programme so that additional funding streams might be accessed to help in the delivery of cricket activities. In turn, this may help to release existing funds, and aid in the employment of new YCB workforce. Discussions continued throughout the winter 2008/09 months and a decision was due to be reached before the beginning of the 2009 season.

Core Programmes And Initiatives A number of projects have been initiated and tested throughout 2008 as the YCIC programme began to take shape. As YCIC develops its plans, a smaller number of programmes will be focused on in 2009 to ensure resources and efforts are being used effectively. These programmes will reach each of the target groups to provide cricket with new, upcoming players of the future.

188 Outreach Programmes YCIC aims to widen its involvement in the Yorkshire community. With the Club being based at Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground, the Club services both the Headingley and Leeds community. A number of initiatives have been instigated in different areas around the community as the report has shown, however, it is the programme‟s desire to expand these into new communities and develop the programmes further. There are plans in place for a Mobile Van scheme in the Yorkshire region that will involve a qualified coach visiting schools, clubs and events and providing educational sessions through the game of cricket in addition to cricket skills activities. The van will be equipped with cricket kit and skills development equipment and will be branded with the YCIC logo to gain added exposure.

Headingley Community Yorkshire County Cricket Club takes its relationship with the Headingley community seriously. A partnership with North Leeds Life magazine has recently been agreed allowing Yorkshire Cricket in the Community to communicate with over 9,000 local residents on a monthly basis and inform them of match day dates and local community work. This has greatly improved the Club‟s relationship in the community. In 2009, Yorkshire County Cricket Club aims to deepen this relationship further by improving communication and raising awareness of its facilities and the opportunities to local people to use them. The development of the new Carnegie Pavilion will trigger a whole set of new activities both in the Headingley and Leeds area.

First, the Carnegie Pavilion will give Yorkshire County Cricket Club a new front door on to Kirkstall Lane and, in doing so, raise its profile within its neighbourhood. In partnership with Leeds City Council and Leeds Metropolitan University, the Club plans work with the local community to deliver sports facilities in the area on commencement of the Carnegie Pavilion development. A new Museum and Visitor Centre is being created in order to attract tourists and visitors to the area. Ticket ballots and open days will also be provided to local residents through the North Leeds Life magazine and a Stadium Liaison Group is being set up to enable a forum for dialogue between stadium management and the neighbourhood.

189 Evaluation And Feedback YCIC will continue to improve its records of the number and demographics of participants taking part in activities are kept in 2009 and by doing so enable the evaluation of its work at the end of the season. In addition, the quality of cricket programmes will continue to be monitored.

Conclusion Yorkshire CCC‟s community programme is now one of the most advanced such initiatives of its kind in the UK. It matches the type of programmes that have been run by many of the UK‟s professional football clubs since the 1990s and in some cases goes beyond what has previously been achieved by those clubs.

The programme was essential for several reasons. First, it demonstrates an understanding of the responsibilities that sports organisations have within their communities. There is an increasing moral obligation for organisations to put something back into their communities as witnessed by the rapid growth of corporate social responsibility programmes around the world.

Because of the high level of interest in sport among the population, sports clubs have a role that goes beyond that of most companies. They really can connect with people in a manner that other companies, social agencies and authorities simply cannot. For this reason it is important that clubs work with such organisations to deliver meaningful outcomes.

For Yorkshire CCC, the programme was also important because the club had been stuck with a reputation that bordered on racist. Whether or not such an image was fair is irrelevant. The programme is a clear demonstration that any such connotations now belong in the past.

Finally, a professional sports club is also a professional business. It needs to attract and retain customers, although such a word is not to be encouraged in this context. People who follow sport are fans – they develop a loyalty to a club that is stronger than that they have with other products or services. Many sports organisations have abused that loyalty in order to „monetise‟ the fans for short term gain. A more progressive approach is to develop a relationship of mutual respect. Fans know that their favourite club relies

190 on their money to exist and to grow. They accept this fact and will spend more if they are treated well and offered relevant products and services at a fair price. A good community programme demonstrates to fans that there is respect for the public, even if the programme is not directly relevant to them.

It is, of course, also an opportunity to communicate with potential new fans and the numbers, as seen in this case study, can be very high.

In marketing terms, one of the most powerful techniques brands use is to induce trial. A community programme allows this to happen on a large scale. To be successful, however, requires that the programme is not used cynically by commercial departments. The community programme must first and foremost meet the community objectives. The marketing department should, of course, be involved in helping to develop the programme and maximising the benefits, but this should be done in a subtle manner. The process of becoming a fan doesn‟t generally start with receiving a coupon or a special offer. It happens through experiencing the sport, either live, on television or through a relationship with friends or family who are passionate about sport. A club can aid and encourage this process, but it can‟t force it. A tour of the ground allowing children into the privileged inner sanctum of the changing rooms and trophy displays is much more powerful than a piece of marketing literature. Similarly having a first team member visit a school to talk about cricket and perhaps do some coaching is a very powerful engagement. It therefore requires effort and resource, but the community and club benefits can be huge.

Yorkshire‟s programme has already started to provide benefits to both community and club. The encouraging aspect of the programme is that it is co-ordinated and comprehensive. It is also refreshing to see that the benefits listed by the club for each project are community, not club, benefits.

A well run community programme will, inevitably, help the club in the long-term through fan recruitment and the consequential financial benefits. But as many businesses are now finding out, a healthy community in general is good for the long-term prospects of those that trade within the area, not only is sport no different in this respect, it is arguably the biggest contributor and beneficiary.

191 9. THE FUTURE

Australian cricket and business writer, Gideon Haigh believes that the game of cricket was for a long time impervious to economic cycles, but that this is no longer the case.

“International cricket is 132 years old, and its success and failure haven‟t been greatly influenced by economic events. In fact, cricket was strong and vibrant during the great depression; likewise the 1970s, in spite of stagflation and the energy crises,” Haigh said.

“However, in the past 25 to 30 years, cricket has been shaped very much by corporate interests: sponsors, broadcasters, licensees and now franchisees in the IPL. Because the business environment has been pretty good, cricket and cricketers have benefited – to the extent that players are being paid millions of dollars for a few weeks work in IPL.

“They‟re not necessarily playing better or achieving more – it‟s simply that their market value has risen. But the market‟s not working that way now. The global economy‟s in trouble. And cricket‟s going to suffer because it‟s become dependent on the money that corporate interests have brought to the game. The deferral of the ICL; the withdrawal of Stanford; the failure of the Champions League to find a sponsor; the end of Vodafone‟s involvement in English cricket…these are incidents that only point one way.”

The rampant commercialism alluded to by Haigh is welcomed by some and abhorred as bad for the game‟s soul by others.

Market Forces One man in favour of letting market economics rule is Stuart Robertson, the commercial director of Hampshire: “I love the intricacies and nuances of the longer forms, but cricket is entertainment in the end. Broadcasters, sponsors and media should be running it on the basis of making it as popular to view and attend as possible,” he said.

“It‟s not the administrators who should decide what form of cricket survives into the future. I want cricket to survive for hundreds of years. If that means format changes over time to accommodate the demands of customers, then so be it. I‟m not advocating the abolition of Test cricket. All I say is let market forces determine what goes on and let‟s

192 make every effort to market all different forms as well as we can. Those making the decisions with their hard-earned money will decide, which means Sky subscriptions, or gate money.

“The decline in the popularity of Tests is also an argument for making them more meaningful. Look at attendances around the world - unless England are playing you see half-full stadia. Is that really the absolute showpiece and pinnacle of international cricket? We must try and keep it very exciting.”

But many lovers of traditional cricket oppose Robertson‟s free-market mantra. Gideon Haigh, for one, is critical of the BCCI for milking the cash cows and not tending to the game‟s future.

“India is a traditional Test-playing nation, one of a handful whose public take Test matches seriously,” Haigh said. “The trouble is that the BCCI don‟t take them seriously. They play Test matches because it is a condition of membership of the ICC. You need only look at their incompetent management of the last series they played against Australia, staged in front of three men and a cow. But cricket‟s economic disequilibrium, whereby an overwhelming proportion of revenue derives from one area, will haunt it in years to come. There is a big danger of sponsors pulling out of the longer game in the future. Who would sponsor Test matches, when they had the option of supporting Twenty20?

“When it comes to Twenty20 cricket, more will mean worse, to invoke Kingsley Amis. Here‟s my dystopia: 10 years hence - only six countries will play Test cricket, and they will do so for one month of the year, in a Wimbledon-esque marquee event. There will be three IPL seasons, and a Twenty20 World Cup every 18 months.”

Other more optimistic commentators, such as Glenn Lovett, vice president of the agency Octagon, oppose strongly Robertson‟s laissez faire view and argue that strong administration can save Test cricket.

193 Lovett said “The BCCI and ECB and ICC and other boards need to get together and work out the ideal touring plan for cricket globally. The squeeze on Test cricket is simply the effect of market forces.

“Twenty20 will squeeze other forms of the game which don‟t deliver either fan engagement or commercial returns. The ICC might find that getting the balance right for their touring programme actually benefits cricket in the longer term. They may be able to get the ideal amount of Twenty20 and the ideal amount of Test cricket to appeal to fans. Again, they could move towards more of a football-type model, where there are a lot more franchise-based competitions and certain windows for national teams.

“On a more positive note, I think the IPL will have a flow-on effect on cricket generally, which could benefit Test matches if the ICC can get the structure right. Players are becoming more high-profile so people are more willing to watch them in other forms of the game. A good example is the Australian, , who came from nowhere into Australia‟s Twenty20 side. There was incredible publicity surrounding him and that flows on into other forms. People want to see him in the one-day form, then domestic cricket.”

There is still evidence that the ICC cares about the decline in attendances for Test matches, which has happened all over the world with the notable exception of England.

When ICC chief executive officer (CEO) Haroon Lorgat saw Sachin Tendulkar become the highest run scorer in front of near empty stands at the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) Stadium against Australia last year, he lamented: “The empty stands are a matter of real concern. All of us who came here were concerned at the lack of spectators and this is something we have to look into because we need to promote and protect this form of the game.”

He added: “It‟s a challenge for the ICC, no doubt about that. Of course there is great attraction for the short forms but it‟s a challenge for us, administrators and member boards to convert that attraction towards Tests.”

He also said that the sanctity of Test cricket cannot be compromised at any cost.

194 As for the game‟s finest players, they are fearful of the impact of Twenty20 cricket. In a survey conducted by the Australian Cricketers‟ Association, a majority of centrally contracted players were not convinced that representing Australia would be the pinnacle of their sport in a decade‟s time. Some 20 per cent of Cricket Australia‟s 25-man contract list said that the baggy green would not be Australian cricket‟s ultimate accolade in 10 years, while another 33 per cent were unsure. Additionally, 47 per cent of Australia‟s elite cricketers rated „balancing playing for your country and competing in the new Twenty20 competitions‟ as the most urgent issue facing world cricket.

Their fears have a great deal of justification, according to the Sunday Times‟ cricket writer, Simon Wilde, who predicted in an article in the Wisden Cricketer that Twenty20‟s major impact would be: “… the end of internationals as the primary goal of every professional player. Instead, many players will essentially be free agents, more independent and wealthy than they have ever been. They will be granted seats, and an influential voice, on national boards and the ICC.

“There will be several Twenty20 leagues around the world - in India, England, Australia and possibly South Africa - plus more exhibition events, like the Stanford Super Series, sponsored by super-rich patrons. These will enable 100 players a year to earn million- dollar salaries from this format alone. All major international cricket is suspended when these events take place.

“The Champions League, however, may take several years to take and, given the exorbitant prices for TV rights paid at the outset, may even be junked as a victim of the credit crunch.”

Wilde‟s prediction is that Test cricket will survive by adapting to modern demands of convenience and entertainment without compromising its essential qualities.

“Test matches will be condensed to four days because five days will seem too long, the tempo of the games will inevitably get faster due to Twenty20, and everyone will regard the chance to save a day and open up valuable space in a crowded calendar as too good an opportunity to miss,” Wilde wrote.

195 “In every country outside England most Test matches will be played under floodlights once manufacturers provide a coloured ball that does not misbehave too much. At a stroke, this will revitalise spectator interest in Australia and South Africa, but problems with dew will influence which venues stage Tests and when these matches are played.

“In defiance of predictions, Tests will continue to provide some of the most enthralling matches and remain much loved by television companies anxious to fill their airtime. Test cricket will be exciting because, thanks to the influence of Twenty20, batting sides think almost no task impossible and are prepared to risk losing in the quest for victory.

“But less Test cricket will be played. Outside the big five who play each other regularly - England, Australia, India, South Africa and West Indies. Under the new Future Tours Programme, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, New Zealand and Bangladesh are permitted to play one-off Tests rather than the existing minimum of two. After the disastrous example of Zimbabwe, no new countries apply for Test status but several new countries start playing official Twenty20s, including the United States and a well-funded Chinese team.”

Wilde‟s argument that cricket will be played under floodlights is a convincing one. According to a report in The Times, Lord‟s could be the first ground to stage a floodlit Test as early as 2010. The MCC has received permission to install permanent floodlights, and given the public support of both the ECB and the ICC, it seems likely to happen soon.

As Wilde points out, the colour of the ball poses a problem. Red is obviously not an option under lights, and white is not viable unless white clothing is also ditched. There is also the perennial problem of the balls becoming discoloured. Trials with pink and orange balls are ongoing, and there is talk that yellow will also be investigated. London‟s Imperial College is looking into the matter.

Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, has made no secret of his enthusiasm for floodlit Tests. “It‟s very important for the game to understand what the spectators want to watch, when they want to watch it and how long they want to watch it for, because we should, at all times, be reacting to the changes in society,” he said.

196 The biggest change of all, which Clarke reacted to by getting into bed with Stanford, is the shift in power to India, which the ECB is powerless to halt.

Brand Rapport‟s Nigel Currie said: “The shift to the BCCI is a natural shift. They are the most powerful country in the sport and it‟s been brewing for a long time. They will have a much bigger influence on the sport, which has traditionally been run from Lord‟s. We invented the game, but in India it is what soccer is here.”

Given this fact, of pure economics, and given the desire for cricket boards to indulge in a certain amount of politicking to get in with the BCCI, it is interesting to consider the game‟s future in India.

A radical perspective is provided by Esau Isaac, director of Indian sports television channel Doodarshan.

“The ultimate demise of Test cricket in India is inevitable. We won‟t be able to afford it ultimately,” he said. “The cost of booking grounds, paying players and facilities will be too great. In India, already very few television companies are interested in Test for their own sake. They only want them if they come with a full package of ODIs and Twenty20s. I really think they cannot survive. I would say Test matches are losing their glory and that is a natural evolution. To quote from Darwin in the bicentenary of his birth, it‟s not the strongest species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most adaptable to change. That will be Twenty20.

“Indian youngsters are different to English ones. We are broadcasting T10 cricket at the moment – 10-over games between teams of 14-16-year-olds, called Gully Cricket, and all the boys want to play for India. But the format is irrelevant. They don‟t care about that. In England youngsters may still aspire to playing Test cricket as the pinnacle of the game, but in India they only want to play for India.”

Echoing Robertson‟s views about market forces, Isaac said that the commercial parameters of Twenty20 would begin determining the future of the game. “Some people may lament the passing of technique and subtleties with the death of Test matches, but

197 the commercial requirements of the game will mould new subtleties and new techniques. Different players with different skills will emerge.” . Cricket has become so powerful in India, argued Isaac, that it is destroying other sports. “Cricket in India is a big money spinner but also a big destroyer. No sponsor, or broadcaster wants to know about badminton, soccer, tennis or chess - at which we have the world champion - or even . The same ultimately will happen to Test cricket in India as market forces prevail.”

One way of avoiding such an apocalyptic vision would be for the ICC to restrict Twenty20 cricket to domestic championships. This would help to ensure that the one- day and Test forms of international cricket maintain their kudos.

Hampshire‟s chairman, Rod Bransgrove, has called for the abandonment of international Twenty20, saying it should be reserved exclusively for the rejuvenation of club and county cricket.

In a report to the ECB, Bransgrove argued: “Twenty20 is a light-hearted gimmicky product designed to cater for the modern quick-fix culture; it should not be usurped by the international game; it will cheapen international fixtures, cannibalise other international formats and render domestic Twenty20 competitions uncompetitive by the removal of star players. Test matches will become special events drawing great interest and producing regular high-intensity competitions popular with live and television audiences. The domestic competitions will become more vibrant with the participation of star players and will increase profile nationally and, potentially, worldwide.”

Despite his belief in letting the market decide the future of cricket, Stuart Robertson, who was there at the birth of Twenty20 cricket, agrees with much of what Bransgrove says.

“Too much international Twenty20 is not appropriate. It was introduced to meet a specific need in the English domestic game – club cricket, and it gave domestic cricket a massive shot in the arm all over the world,” said Robertson.

198 China And The Rest Of The World

A first consignment of cricket equipment was sent to China from India last year, according to BCCI, who were responding to a request from the Chinese authorities for help in cultivating a team game, which is promoted as good for socialist solidarity. India has also promised to send coaches from the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore, accompanied by umpires and groundsmen.

“China has already taken to cricket at the schools level in a big way,” a BCCI spokesman said. “It‟s time to support a blossoming love of the game.”

China‟s burgeoning interest in cricket – Twenty20 will feature in the and China is busy training youngsters for the event – may seem surprising. But it is partly motivated by political aims.

The ‟s media officer, Shahriar Khan, said: “China very much wants to engage with Asia via this game – they‟ve seen Sri Lanka, a relatively tiny country of 20 million, winning a World Cup, and with 1.3 billion people, are thinking: surely, surely we can win this as well.”

China has a typically rigorous plan and it would be unwise to underestimate her capacity to achieve its aims. By 2009, according to the five-year plan, there will be at least 720 teams across the country in a highly organised system designed to channel promising youngsters from primary schools into the top secondary schools and then onto cricket programmes at China‟s elite universities.

The aim is to qualify for the 2019 World Cup and, ultimately, to beat its economic rival India in a Test.

There is admittedly a long way to go. Last year, there were only 100 cricketers in China and that was including foreigners and the game had been introduced to just eight schools. But the numbers are growing all the time.

199 Many commentators believe that Twenty20 will be the form of the game to cross frontiers into China and other countries.

Nigel Currie of Brand Rapport, said: “It can spread around the world because it‟s much more „packageable‟ than four-day cricket. Twenty20 can be lifted up and moved around; it‟s much more flexible than longer forms. You can start things like the IPL at relatively short notice, with relatively short amounts of planning. Also the concept – whack it as hard as you can –is much simpler, which makes it easier to market.”

The difficulty of getting a Test world championship off the ground backs up Currie‟s argument that Twenty20‟s format is more easily manipulated.

“Eventually a cricketer from Japan and China will break through into the IPL,” Currie said. “That‟s the sort of thing teams have to aim for to make themselves marketable in, say, China. Football has done that, but it doesn‟t happen overnight. The football [FIFA] World Cup has been to North America, Korea, and is going to Africa; whereas it used to alternate between and Europe. There are Chinese players in the Premiership and they are desperate for more to open up markets. If one player breaks through into the IPL, the game will take off in China.”

The cult following in China of their home-grown talent, such as Yao Ming in the NBA (US ), shows what can be achieved when one star breaks through.

The Olympics would be another vehicle for spreading cricket, through Twenty20, around the world, but the ICC has so far ruled it out because of the game‟s overcharged fixture list.

Conclusion Twenty20 will have a large part to play in cricket‟s future because, as a commodity it suits broadcasters, sponsors, players, governing bodies and above all, fans. It‟s easy to sell, easy to transport and easy to understand. It plays to short-term attention spans and fits neatly into modern popular culture, with its music videos, celebrities and fast food.

200 It‟s also worth remembering that the format is in its infancy and it may yet mutate into a more technically interesting game with batsmen and bowlers developing new techniques. For the Twenty20 World Cup in 2009, this has already been evident with some new bowling styles such as slow bouncers, being employed. The tournament appears to have been a major success with high levels of interest among cricket fans and some very exciting matches.

It seems likely, however, that the nuances of the longer format will also ensure that it too has a significant place in the schedules. What is more difficult to predict is the relative proportion of the schedule accorded to the different formats in a generation‟s time. This depends on the administrators‟ willingness to preserve the longer format in a commercially driven world.

A worrying, though highly significant, development came ahead of the second England v West Indies Test at Chester-le-Street, Durham, on May 14, 2009, when the visiting West Indian captain, , told the Guardian newspaper that he “wouldn‟t be so sad if Test cricket died out”, and he would be free to concentrate on Twenty20 cricket. The comments provoked an instant response from England captain , who leapt to the defence of Test cricket in a typically English style.

Apart from the issue of whether a captain should disparage the Test match format days before his side contests a Test match, Gayle‟s comments illustrate the way many players are likely to feel in the future. An overcharged fixture list meant that Gayle arrived two days before the Test series in England because of his commitments to the IPL, which he was understandably reluctant to turn down. Along with many of his team, he didn‟t look too enamoured of the bitterly cold weather at Lord‟s in what was the earliest scheduled Test match played in England. Unsurprisingly, Gayle and his under- prepared players suffered a heavy defeat.

Looking at the crowd data for the second Test match at Chester-le-Street, Durham, where barely 5,000 turned up for the first day, many fans appeared to share Gayle‟s distaste for cricket so early in the year.

201 In future, the ECB might have to consider culling one of the two summer Test series in England to allow players time to compete in the IPL, then have time to rest before their international commitments kick in. More radically, the administrators may have to look at changing the nature of Test cricket by shortening it and introducing a greater emphasis on fast scoring through limiting the number of overs per side. Preserving the epic quality of Test cricket, while also ensuring results and speeding up the game, could be the best way to ensure its future.

Most importantly, the schedule for Test cricket needs to be arranged by the ICC and the cricketing boards, with the game‟s best interests at heart, rather than short-term financial gains.

One option that could also be explored is a Test World Cup. As with most global sporting events, it would probably be staged quadrennially and tour the major cricketing nations of the world. Given the nature of Test cricket, it would probably have to be a straight knockout tournament and some rule changes would need to be introduced to ensure that games could not result in a draw with contingency plans in place for bad weather.

The fact is that few Test series generate huge excitement regarding the overall outcome. The exceptions are the Ashes and those series, such as India v Pakistan, where rivalry extends beyond the sporting arena. But even in these instances, the outcome is often clear after the first two matches.

A world championship would leave the major Test playing nations with a small overall reduction in their Test series calendar, but it offers the potential to revitalise interest in the format worldwide and would almost certainly attract the interest of major broadcasters.

Overall major sports have steadily been moving towards a model in which broadcasters and club teams call the shots. In football, the big leagues in Europe have effectively cut adrift from the rest of the game. Second tier leagues, secondary tournaments and international matches have lost a great deal of clout. Football clubs see the financial potential from their primary domestic leagues and the UEFA Champions League. This is where the big broadcast revenues are earned and everything else comes second. The

202 matches are now played at a time that suits the broadcasters, who pay a fortune for the privilege.

To prevent a privately funded, breakaway European „Superleague‟, UEFA effectively had to jump through hoops to appease Europe‟s powerful clubs‟ demands for more money. UEFA has done an admirable job in this respect. It has kept much of the Champions League on free-to-air television and developed sophisticated event branding and sponsorship strategies to maximise commercial income.

However, as a governing body, it hasn‟t had the power to prevent the enormous discrepancies in income between Europe‟s powerful clubs and those left behind.

Cricket now faces a similar challenge although there are some differences. Unlike football, cricket players are effectively becoming free agents and have even been described as „hired guns‟. A top English player, for example, could have a contract with his county club, a central contract with the ECB and a contract with an IPL club. Australian players might have even more, with English club contracts in the summer months, domestic club contracts as well as international and IPL contracts.

The difference between football and cricket, therefore, is that in cricket, players have even more relative influence and are not tied to a club team. For a team sport to have individuals flitting between different clubs depending on money offered should be a cause for concern.

This is especially so given that the cricket calendar is over-crowded. Again, taking England as an example, the county teams play their four-day County Championship matches as well as three limited overs series. Top players are also involved in the IPL and numerous international matches in the various formats. The result is a crowded fixture list and confusion among fans about what the different matches mean. A single player could quite easily end up playing in ten different competitions during a single year.

Something has got to give. Traditionally that something is whatever has least potential to earn money, which in cricket is the four-day game. This, however, is seen as the bedrock of cricket development. Without it, players will quite simply lose the experience

203 of long-format cricket and test cricket would no longer be viable. The governing bodies, who regulate test cricket, have a duty to maintain the four-day game as part of their remit to protect and promote the game.

Outside entrepreneurs, however, have no such qualms. Their duty is to shareholders to maximise revenues. If they could create a profitable model to lure top players away from their contracts, this would certainly happen. The irony is that currently, the large number of fixtures would probably prevent this from happening. Unless a promoter can guarantee a very significant income for top players for a single series, risking a ban from the very lucrative officially sanctioned but overblown calendar is not an option.

The advent of a second IPL per season, however, has been raised and this would be sanctioned by the BCCI. The ICC, therefore, would find it hard to oppose even if it impacted on international fixtures.

It appears that the favoured option, as proposed by Lalit Modi of the BCCI in May 2009, is for a series that tours the major cricketing nations but could also go to such emerging cricket countries as the United States and Canada. This could place even greater demands on the world‟s leading players.

At present top English players, for example are offered central contracts by the ECB that range in value from around $150K to $350K per season. The contracts dictate when those players can appear for their counties and the ECB has even prevented players from appearing in domestic knockout semi-finals where it feels they should be rested for international matches.

A second IPL, therefore, could mean that the very top names in countries such as England and Australia play virtually no domestic club cricket at all. This would weaken the appeal of the various competitions.

The next logical step is that the central contracts no longer provide the allure that they once did when compared to riches on offer from competitions such as the IPL. This is arguably some way down the line, but it is noticeable that the likes of Adam Gilchrist and

204 Shane Warne featured in the IPL after they had retired from international cricket – how long before those retirements come even earlier?

Cricket therefore needs to clarify its events and calendar. There is a need to decide on the direction to follow and to have a strategy that all of the governing bodies can agree on. There will inevitably be some rationalisation of the fixture list to accommodate Twenty20 and this has been evident in England with the Pro40 series being dropped and replaced by a second Twenty20 Cup.

For new and existing competitions to succeed, it is vital that the fans cricket is trying to attract understand the nature and relevance of the various formats and competitions. Fans want to see top stars, high quality entertainment and experience first class facilities. Because such a formula attracts fans, it will also attract broadcasters and sponsors.

Twenty20 has gone a long way to delivering an exciting new formula for cricket, but the sport can‟t rest on its laurels by assuming a never ending stream of Twenty20 matches will provide continuous growth. There is a danger of overkill and it should also be remembered that cricket is a sport with arguably a greater heritage than any other in the world. Many players and fans remain passionate about the essence of the game and have a strong allegiance to the traditions of club and test cricket. Those fans who have jumped on the Twenty20 bandwagon could easily jump off once the novelty factor goes.

Indeed some traditional fans have been put off attending matches because of both the format of Twenty20 and the behaviour of some of the fans. In both England and Australia excessive drinking and rowdy behaviour has been evident and rights holders seeking to retain existing fans and attract families have to consider how to balance the influx of high-spending young men, with such audiences.

In short, cricket cannot afford to put all of its eggs in one basket, especially when the long-term strength of the proposition is unproven.

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