As the third season of The Hundred kicks off on Tuesday, July 23, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has announced plans to revamp the competition for the next season.

 The ECB revealed that private investors, including Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises, are set to inject fresh capital into the league. Discussions have been held with various IPL team owners, although specific details about interested parties and the new business model remain undisclosed.

Vikram Banerjee, ECB’s Director of Business Operations, stated during a recent media conference call, “We’re about to enter a commercial negotiation, but at a principal level, this will run very similar to other franchise leagues around the world. We have spoken about the IPL owners. I’ve met all of them and taken feedback from them on specific things about what’s important.”

Banerjee also mentioned that formal negotiations will commence in early to mid-September, aiming to leverage the momentum from the current season. 

“We’ll then look to start the process in earnest in kind of early mid September. So (we are) kind of building off that momentum that hopefully is created from the tournament with the name that the 2025 season becomes the first season with a different look. We obviously can’t say just yet, but the process will probably run into early next year, with the idea being that at least broadly, who’s coming into what team by the time the draft comes around, by the time the ticket on sale comes around in February- March,” he said.

Despite the influx of private investment, the ECB maintains it will retain control over the competition’s core aspects. Richard Gould, ECB CEO, emphasized, “Well, control comes at different levels. It comes at team level and it comes at competition level. In terms of ceding control at competition level, and therefore the length of the window, where that window sits, how the competition is organised, that’s not something that we are ceding control of.”

“That’s why we’re not selling the competition. That’s why we’re focused on those teams. And I think we’re finding that different investor groups have different needs. For some of them, control, for example, of what happens on the field will be very important. For others, branding will be important. The commercial element will also be significantly important,” he added.

The ECB plans to offer up to 49% equity stakes in teams while retaining a controlling 51% share.

The Hundred features eight men’s and women’s teams playing in a 100-ball format. This season’s final is set to take place at Lord’s on August 18.