New index lays bare county cricket's inequality
Surrey top the new Leonard Curtis Financial Performance Index (FPI) and alongside Warwickshire and Lancashire contribute 44% of the total annual revenue of the 18 first class counties.
County cricket stands on the cusp of a new era.
In theory, the windfall from private investment in the Hundred should ensure that times have never been so good.
But a new annual report by Leonard Curtis which grades the financial performance of all 18 first class counties for the first time, illustrates that challenges that face both men’s and women’s domestic cricket.
Launched at the Oval on Tuesday, the study shows just how tough life is for some of the non-Hundred hosting counties - and how reliant they are on ECB funding.
While that funding makes up just 6% of Surrey’s annual revenue - and 10% and 14% of Warwickshire’s and Lancashire’s respectively - it delivers over 50% for the likes of Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Northamptonshire.
The FPI, which has been formulated using the Performance Assessment Model, pioneered by Rob and Sheffield Hallam’s Dan Plumley, it provides the most comprehensive review of county finances ever undertaken.
It’s also timely given that up to £520m is about to pore into county coffers from investors in the Hundred.
The report is co-authored by Rob, and he says its findings demonstrate the hole that some counties would be in without the seismic shift we’ve witnessed in the embracing of overseas private investment.
“This report raises questions about the long-term viability of the county model,” says Rob.
“Investment in The Hundred may provide some medium-term relief, but only if invested strategically and to build infrastructure.
“Cricket in England and Wales remains overly reliant on central distributions, TV rights, and international fixtures at a handful of Test grounds.
“While significant profits have been posted in isolated cases over the past ten 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.”
Speaking at the launch, England’s Ashes winning captain in 2005 Michael Vaughan, outlined his hopes for how the windfall - which should see non-host counties receive upwards of £25m - would ideally be spent.
“I honestly thought the report was going to say, "We're going to have to get rid of four (counties),” he said.
Michael Vaughan sits alongside report author, Jonathan Dyson and Alex Cadwallader, Leonard Curtis Director
“That's what I thought the report would suggest.
“But with this cash flow that's going to come in from the Hundred, it looks like we've got a chance - a chance that if the money is spent wisely and people can creatively come up with sustainable business models, that we might be able to keep 18 counties.”
It’s fitting that the Oval was the location for the launch, given Surrey’s domestic pre-eminence, on and off the pitch.
“We’re sat here at the Oval, and I know this is prime real estate, I understand that, we're in central London,” says Vaughan.
“(Surrey are) head and shoulders above every other club.
“And that's not just in a business sense - clearly having international games, having 100 ball team here - it adds massively to the revenue stream.
“But you look around this ground and what it's provides on a day to day basis.
“I don't know the absolute amount of days that cricket is played at others venues, but it's not a great deal when you look at the whole year. So it's very, very important to create a sustainable model.
“This is where the Oval and places like Lancashire, Warwickshire come into their own - these are spaces, (they’re) real estate venues.
“And I've said for many, many years, I've always thought of cricket venues as real estate businesses.
“Those that have maximised that, have done very, very well.
“It's still always a struggle because cricket is not the pinnacle, it's not the number one sport in the UK. So you have to have creative minds.”
Rob (centre) sits on a panel including two former England captains in Michael Vaughan and Iain Nairn
Ironically, just an hour after leaving the event in South London, Rich and Rob caught up with a senior figure in the IPL who expressed surprise that he hadn’t been able to find any coverage of that morning’s Hundred draft on any social media or mainstream channel.
“We haven’t even had franchises announcing new players on Instagram,” he said. “This aren’t hard things to do, you could get a university intern to do them.
“You see the IPL auction lasting for a couple of days and the country comes to a standstill. It’s the same in the NFL.
“I think English cricket just needs to commit to the Hundred. I mean really commit to it and throw everything at it.”
There is, as Vaughan suggests, no shortage of creativity among senior figures in English cricket.
And there needs to be, because the private investment that has poured into the game, isn’t going to suddenly double up as a magic wand that can be waved to cure all English cricket’s ills.
“Now is not the time for complacency,” says Rob. “While 10 counties posted a profit in 2023, debt levels remain significant.
“Collectively, the 18 counties held almost £340 million of debt at the end of 2023, with the so-called ‘big five’; Surrey, Hampshire, Lancashire, Yorkshire, and Warwickshire, carrying over 75% of that burden. Not that debt is always a bad thing.
“The Hundred windfall presents an unprecedented chance to reshape the future of county cricket.
“But we must resist the urge to simply inflate player salaries or patch over long-term issues.
“The FPI shows us clearly where investment is needed: in debt reduction, facilities, and pathways, especially at the counties currently reliant on central funding.
“We also need to be honest about the growing divide between counties that host Hundred franchises and those that do not.
“The average Index score for host counties is significantly lower - meaning better performance - than for non-hosts (at present the average FPI score of host counties is 7.25 compared to 9.07, with a lower score representing better financial help and management over the past ten years).
“"If left unaddressed, this gap will widen further.”
It’s not just the men’s game that is ideally placed to benefit. The women’s game is already on a dramatic upward trajectory, and the speed of that rise could increase still further.
“Women’s cricket now stands at a unique inflection point,” says Gessica Howarth, Vice-President and a founding member of Sphera Partners, a growth equity investment firm focused on women’s sport, and a member of the expert panel which contributed to the report.
“The introduction of the new domestic structure presents a significant opportunity to unlock and engage an emerging fanbase, while harnessing the scale and support of the established men's county system.
“It can also help the game capitalise on the momentum building across the sport, particularly since the launch of The Hundred, which has powerfully demonstrated demand for the women’s game.”
Disability cricket is also another area of focus for the report. Michael Vaughan made it clear that he supported the idea of integrating disability cricket into the Hundred, in order to boost both its profile and participation numbers.
Iain Nairn, MBE, a director at Leonard Curtis, and a former captain of the England disability side, agrees.
“Key to disability cricket’s development will be linking it into The Hundred as it continues to develop and attract players, fans and volunteers to the game,” he says.
“The ECB needs to ensure that, through its funding formula, all counties can provide opportunity for disabled cricketers to participate on both a grassroots and elite level.
“The Hundred appears to be a great format to drive fresh engagement.”
Rob summed up this time of almost unprecedented opportunity.
“Our message today is simple: spend wisely, plan strategically, and use data to inform decisions,” he says.
“With responsible stewardship, this is the moment we ensure our counties not only survive, but thrive.”