ISSUE No 10
Part 1
Why West Indies Cricket Needs a New Financial Model
A tale of two cricket boards: billions in one corner, losses mounting in the other.
Cricket is no longer just a sport; it’s a financial engine. And when you look at the numbers, the gulf between boards is staggering.
At the BCCI’s 2024 AGM, the Honorary Secretary reported that since 2019, the board’s cash and bank balance has surged from INR 6,059 crore (USD $687M) to INR 20,686 crore (USD $2.35B) — after already paying out everything owed to state associations. In five years, India’s board has added nearly USD $1.66B to its reserves, including USD $475M in the past year alone. Their general fund has more than doubled, now standing at nearly USD $906M.
We should salute India for this remarkable stability and growth. They’ve built a financial fortress around their game and it didn’t happen by accident. The IPL, launched just 16 years ago, has been the single biggest catalyst in global cricket’s commercial revolution. Similarly, the ECB’s creation of The Hundred unlocked a £520M injection into English cricket. These boards used innovation and boldness to transform their futures.
Now contrast that with the West Indies.
According to Cricket West Indies’ 2023 Annual Report, revenues dropped by USD $16M year-on-year, falling from USD $78.6M in 2022 to USD $62.3M in 2023. Instead of adding hundreds of millions, CWI is battling to plug financial holes. Outside of ICC grants and occasional bumper home series against India or England, most cricket played by the West Indies actually runs at a loss.
The financial gap is not just wide — it’s widening at an alarming pace. While India adds half a billion dollars in a year, the West Indies lose sixteen million. One side has the resources to expand pathways, raise player salaries, and invest in cutting-edge infrastructure. The other is left scraping by.
The question is obvious: does West Indies cricket need its own catalyst?
If it isn’t a new tournament on the scale of the IPL or The Hundred, could it be something even bolder like private or public investment that reshapes the structure of the game in the Caribbean?
That’s the idea we’ll explore in this series. In Part 2, we’ll unpack what a hybrid ownership model for West Indies cricket could look like and why it might be the first real step toward sustainability.
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