MCC take control of Hundred franchise after landmark members’ vote

Marylebone Cricket Club members have voted overwhelmingly in favour of involving the club in the Hundred by accepting a 51 per cent share in London Spirit following a special general meeting.

MCC, as the proprietors of Lord’s, are due to be handed a controlling stake in London Spirit, the Hundred team who play at the home of cricket. This comes ahead of the sale of teams overseen by the England and Wales Cricket Board.

MCC were the sole host venue who gave their members a say in whether to accept the stake, which can be kept or sold, in part or in full. They held a SGM last week, with voting closing at noon on Monday.

The resolution of the vote read: “That the MCC Committee be authorised to make appropriate arrangements for the Club to receive a 51 per cent stake in the London Spirit franchise in The Hundred competition and, if necessary, to exercise the Club’s right of veto regarding an investment partner.”

Guy Lavender, the outgoing chief executive of the club, wrote to members on Monday evening to confirm that the resolution had passed. Of the club’s 18,000 full and senior members, who were eligible to vote, there were 6,037 votes cast. There were 4,897 in favour, 1,140 against, and eight invalid. Therefore 81.12 per cent of the votes were in favour when only a simple majority was required.

As Lavender said in his letter to members: “On behalf of the Committee, I would like to thank every Member who has worked with us to get to this point, whether by participating in consultation activity throughout the year, engaging with the SGM itself (whether attending and contributing live or watching afterwards), or simply familiarising yourself with the subject matter by reading the SGM papers and voting on the Resolution.

“The Club’s Hundred Steering Group, to whom the Committee has delegated detailed consideration of MCC’s future involvement in the London Spirit franchise, will continue its work as ECB’s sales process progresses. We will update Members once there is more to report.”