Ambanis & Brady group agree Hundred deals

Oval Invincibles men are the current Hundred champions

India's wealthiest family and the Tom Brady-backed owners of Birmingham City have agreed deals worth a combined £100m for the first two stakes of teams in The Hundred.

In Thursday's first pair of sales, a 49% stake in Oval Invincibles was won by Reliance Industries Limited, owned by the multi-billionaire Ambani family. Reliance is also in charge of Indian Premier League team Mumbai Indians.

Knighthead Capital, the US group that includes legendary NFL quarterback Brady, then agreed to buy 49% in Birmingham Phoenix. Knighthead invested in Birmingham City Football Club in 2023.

County clubs Surrey and Warwickshire, the hosts of Invincibles and Phoenix respectively, opted to retain the 51% shares in each franchise gifted to them by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

The Invincibles and Phoenix auctions were the first two to offer stakes in teams in The Hundred, with the remaining six taking place in the coming days.

A 100% stake in Invincibles was valued at about £120m, making the 49% deal worth about £60m. Phoenix were rated at about £80m, which values that 49% deal at £40m and puts total sales to date at approximately £100m.

The winning bidders now enter an eight-week period of exclusivity in order to finalise the partnerships.

Surrey, Warwickshire and the ECB declined to comment.

The deal for the Invincibles means they will be affiliated with a Mumbai Indians group that includes men's teams in the United States, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates, and a team in India's Women's Premier League.

The Invincibles men are two-time and current Hundred champions, while the women were winners in both 2021 and 2022.

Phoenix's men were beaten in the inaugural final in 2021, while the women have never finished higher than third.

The sales continue on Friday and into next week, with the ECB set to confirm the eight preferred bidders at the end of next week.

The ECB is retaining control of The Hundred competition, but it is selling stakes in the teams to provide a cash injection to the game in this country.

Hosts of the eight teams have been given a 51% stake in their franchise, which they can sell or keep, with the ECB then selling the remaining 49%.

The eight hosts are Lord's (Marylebone Cricket Club - MCC/London Spirit), The Oval (Surrey/Oval Invincibles), Southampton (Hampshire/Southern Brave), Cardiff (Glamorgan/Welsh Fire), Trent Bridge (Nottinghamshire/Trent Rockets), Edgbaston (Warwickshire/Birmingham Phoenix), Old Trafford (Lancashire/Manchester Originals) and Headingley (Yorkshire/Northern Superchargers).

Of the 51% the hosts have been given, they can keep all, or choose to sell all or part of their stake.

From the total money raised, an allocation of 10% will go straight to the recreational game. Proceeds from the 49% sales will be divided between the 18 first-class counties and the MCC.

If a host decides to sell part or all of its stake, it will hand over 10% of what it receives to be divided between the 18 counties and MCC.

Analysis - 'Most important moment since invention of T20'

If a virtual auction on a grey Thursday in January does not sound too exciting, the reality is English cricket has just experienced its most important moment since the invention of professional T20 more than 20 years ago.

Inviting investment is designed to safeguard the future of the game for many years to come, but it will also alter its path, possibly irreversibly.

The chance to buy into English cricket was always likely to be enticing for IPL teams. Mumbai Indians, owned by the famous Ambani family, are perhaps the most glamorous of all. It is no surprise the Reliance group have moved for one of the two London Hundred teams, seen as the most lucrative.

Much in the same way that Manchester City and other Premier League clubs have paved the way for global football networks, so too have Mumbai Indians and the rest of the IPL across franchise cricket leagues.

Whereas English football is often the centre of a multi-club system, English cricket has so far been outside the worldwide structure. Now, Mumbai have a foothold in one of this country's oldest cricketing institutions: The Oval.

One key difference is that the other Mumbai teams were founded from scratch in new leagues. The Invincibles are an existing entity. With Surrey, the biggest county side in England, owning the majority share, Reliance may not have the final say in cricketing matters.

For Knighthead, investment in the Phoenix strengthens its ties to Birmingham, creating a unified sporting brand in the city.

The Hundred is a divisive presence in the English game, with some believing it detracts from more traditional formats. Now there will be a wait to learn how the investors influence cricket in the country.