The County Club has been facing financial difficulties, leading its chairman to seek private investors.
Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) are currently engaged in a three-way race to secure the ownership of an English club.
Yorkshire County Club has been facing financial difficulties, leading its chairman, Colin Greaves, to seek private investors in 2024. This renewed search has rekindled interest from the 2008 IPL champions, who had previously tried to buy the club with a £25 million offer in 2023.
The Rajasthan Royals proposed a new acquisition strategy involving additional borrowing rather than a direct cash investment. However, this proposal would not resolve the club’s existing £15 million debt, as Yorkshire would remain liable for the amount borrowed from the Royals. Consequently, Yorkshire rejected this offer, preferring not to replace one debt with another. Despite this, talks between the franchise and the club are still in progress.
The Sun Group, which owns Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL and Sunrisers Eastern Cape in SA20, has shown interest in acquiring Yorkshire and has put forward a £50 million offer, doubling the initial bid from the Royals. Additionally, the Goenka Group, which owns the Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL and Durban Super Giants in SA20, is also reportedly interested but has yet to make a formal bid as negotiations continue.
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The successful buyer of Yorkshire will also gain ownership of the Headingley Cricket Ground. It is expected that a deal will be finalized within the year, as various Indian investors are looking to acquire county clubs and The Hundred franchises. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has encouraged these investors to take stakes in The Hundred, with ongoing discussions on this topic.
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