Ambani family on course for £100m London Spirit in Hundred auction
The likely destinations of English cricket’s crown jewels in the Hundred auction are taking shape, with the Ambani family’s determination to buy 49 per cent of the London Spirit in a deal expected to exceed £100m forcing other bidders to look elsewhere.
A consortium of Californian investors led by Nikesh Arora, chief executive of Palo Alto Networks, had been weighing up a late bid for the Lord’s-based franchise, but is now thought to have refocussed its sights on the Oval Invincibles.
Given the Oval’s proximity to and strong connections with the City, teaming up with a group of financiers and executives would appear to represent a sensible fit for Surrey, particularly as the club are adamant they will not sell their 51 per cent stake in the Hundred franchise, which investors from the Indian Premier League would demand.
The billionaire owner of IPL side Lucknow Super Giants, Sanjiv Goenka, was also keen on London Spirit, but is now targeting other franchises, with Trent Rockets and Manchester Originals on his wish-list.
Private equity firm CVC Capital Partners has also held talks with Oval Invincibles and is now facing a dilemma of whether to enter a bidding war or look elsewhere ahead of the third round of bidding in the Hundred auction next week.
With their net worth estimated at $117bn by Forbes last year, the Ambani family has the resources to blow their rivals away, but history suggests they are likely to get what they want without overpaying.
In the bidding process to set up both the IPL and women’s IPL the Ambani family won the Mumbai Indians franchise unopposed.
Chelsea women’s team sale still awaiting approval from Premier League
Chelsea’s sale of their women’s team to a sister company of their ownership group has yet to be formally cleared by the Premier League.
As an Associated Party Transaction, the deal with BlueCo 22 Midco has to be ratified as having taken place at fair-market value. That process is being undertaken by Nielsen Sports, the global data and media valuation firm that has contracts with the Premier League and several top-flight clubs.
Chelsea have yet to publish their 2023-24 accounts so the size of the deal is not yet known, but it has been widely reported that the club valued their women’s team at around £120m.
As a fast-growing sport accurate valuations in women’s football are difficult, but by comparison eight-times Champions League winners Lyon were valued at around £44m two years ago when entrepreneur and serial sports investor Michele Kang bought a minority stake in the club.
The Premier League’s ruling, informed by Nielsen Sports, could have implications for Chelsea’s compliance with Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) after they avoided a breach last year through the sale of two hotels at Stamford Bridge for £76.5m, deals which were approved.
Sweeney set to come out swinging as both sides of RFU pay war tool up with PR firms
Rugby union’s civil war over the Rugby Football Union’s bonus scandal continues to rage ahead of a Special General Meeting to hear calls for the resignation of chief executive Bill Sweeney.
Following reports in The Times last week that the RFU has engaged crisis management company Teneo to advise them on how to handle the row, City PM can reveal that the Championship clubs have also appointed an external PR company, Mult Box Media.
The 12 second-tier clubs have led the way in trying to bring down Sweeney after it emerged in November that he was paid a bonus of £358,000 last year, bringing his total remuneration package to £1.1m.
The Championship released a joint statement last month calling for a vote of no confidence in the leadership of the RFU, which was supported by influential grassroots groups such as the Community Clubs Union and the Rugby Football Referees’ Union.
After receiving a formal letter with signatories of 141 clubs and referees societies earlier this month, the RFU has agreed to hold a Special General Meeting following this year’s Six Nations Championship.
With both sides using external PR firms the next few weeks are unlikely to be quiet, with Sweeney expected to come out swinging in a series of media interviews planned for next week.
FA Cup exit reignites Arteta’s plan for Arsenal winter break in Dubai
Mikel Arteta is planning to take Arsenal on another mid-season trip to Dubai next month in an attempt to get their Premier League title challenge back on track.
Arsenal went to Dubai for a warm-weather training camp last January in a move credited by many players with reviving their season.
Arsenal had won just one game in seven before last season’s mid-winter break, but returned refreshed and won five successive Premier League matches, scoring 21 goals in the process.
Arteta had been resigned to going without a winter break this season because of the expansion of the Champions League’s initial phase to eight matches, but getting knocked out of the FA Cup by Manchester United last weekend has created an unexpected opportunity.
Arsenal will now have a blank weekend when the FA Cup fourth round takes place between 6 and 10 February, and Arteta wants to take the squad away.
The final arrangements will be confirmed when it is certain that Arsenal will not be in the Champions League last 16 play-offs, which is scheduled for the following week.
Arteta’s side are riding high in the Champions League table and are likely to need one win from their final two games, against Dinamo Zagreb this evening and Girona next week, to avoid the play-offs.
Arsenal’s last game before the planned break is the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final at Newcastle on 5 February. They trail 2-0 after the first leg, so a sunshine break could give the players a timely boost.
Leeds v Sheff Wed delivers 1m viewers for milestone ITV broadcast
ITV recorded viewing figures of over 1m for Leeds United’s Championship win over Sheffield Wednesday last weekend, the first EFL game televised live by the terrestrial broadcaster for 23 years.
The impressive audience is similar to the viewing figures achieved by TNT Sports for their Premier League live games on Saturday evenings and is seen as a good start to their broadcast deal by ITV, particularly as the game was also shown live on Sky Sports, who pulled in 300,000 viewers.
As part of a sub-licensing agreement with Sky, ITV will show nine more Championship games live this season, as well as the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Tottenham and the final of the competition.