Report reveals ‘yawning gap’ between Hundred hosts & other counties

A report into the financial health of county cricket has revealed a yawning gap between those clubs who host a Hundred franchise and those who do not.

The Leonard Curtis Cricket Finance Report, external shows Surrey, Lancashire and Warwickshire generated 44% of the total revenue of all 18 first-class counties in 2023.

It also found a number of counties are reliant on central funding from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) for the majority of their income, with 71% of Northamptonshire’s revenue coming from the ECB, while for Leicestershire it is 67% and Derbyshire 56%.

“Cricket in England and Wales remains overly reliant on central distributions, TV rights, and international fixtures at a handful of Test grounds,” said the report’s co-author, Professor Rob Wilson.

“While significant profits have been posted in isolated cases over the past 10 years, they are exceptions to the rule.

“Without ECB support and income from The Hundred, it is questionable whether some counties could survive even for a single season.”

A new Financial Performance Index ranks clubs based on their results on and off the field for the 10 years between 2014 and 2023 with Surrey, who host the Oval Invincibles in The Hundred, leading the way, while Leicestershire are bottom of the table.

This year’s Hundred competition, now in its fifth year, gets under way on 5 August.