ETPL had everything lined up.
ICC backing. Bollywood money. Professional advisors. The European T20 Premier League was ready to launch six franchises across Dublin, Belfast, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Amsterdam, and Rotterdam.
Then they watched £975 million flow to England instead.
The numbers don’t lie.
The Hundred attracted £975 million in total team valuations. Tech billionaires like Google’s Sundar Pichai invested £145 million in London Spirit alone. Tom Brady bought Birmingham Phoenix. The Ambani family grabbed Oval Invincibles.
Meanwhile, ETPL postponed their 2024 launch to 2026. The delay cost them momentum in cricket’s hottest investment cycle.
The Global Cricket Gold Rush
Cricket investment has exploded into a $6 billion annual market. Major League Cricket raised $120 million in the US. The IPL generates over $6 billion yearly. Nine IPL franchise owners now back teams across five different global leagues.
This hurts new leagues.
Investment capital isn’t infinite. When The Hundred opened its doors to private equity, it took money that could have gone elsewhere. ETPL found itself competing against an established English league with proven broadcast deals and existing infrastructure.
Every dollar that went to London was a dollar that couldn’t go to Europe.
Strategic Patience Over Market Pressure
Now ETPL is regrouping. Warren Deutrom, CEO of Cricket Ireland, calls Oakvale Capital’s involvement “a game-changer for ETPL’s long-term vision”.
The lesson was expensive but clear. The previous Euro T20 Slam had similar ambitions in 2019. It collapsed before playing a single match. Financial instability killed it.
ETPL’s leadership saw the wreckage and chose different priorities.
Rather than rush to market, they secured professional investment banking support. KPMG India joined as strategic advisor. The infrastructure exists for long-term success.
Europe’s Cricket Foundation
The basics are there. The Netherlands invested €85 million in cricket infrastructure since 2020. Germany saw 89% participation growth between 2020 and 2025. Six planned franchises across Dublin, Belfast, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Amsterdam, and Rotterdam target established cricket communities.
But timing beats everything else. Without proper timing, even solid fundamentals mean nothing.
The Bigger Picture
ETPL’s delay shows they learned something The Hundred’s investors already knew. Timing beats everything.
Cricket returns to the Olympics in 2028. Media rights negotiations happen between 2029-2032. The European market will still be there in 2026.
The question was never whether Europe wanted cricket. The question was whether ETPL could survive long enough to give it to them properly.
Their answer: wait for the money to come back around.