Exposure will bring benefits for Greens
GUERNSEY will gain valuable exposure on the global stage – once the team are able to compete in international tournaments again.
The International Cricket Council yesterday announced that for the first time ever 541 pathway event matches across three ICC World Cups will be live streamed globally in partnership with IMG, ensuring more cricket from more nations than ever before is accessible to fans around the world.
The live streaming deal, which is up until April 2023, will enable fans to watch all qualifying matches to three ICC World Cups – the Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, the Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 and the Men’s T20 World Cup 2022.
Only the last of those involves Guernsey, but GCB chief executive Mark Latter regards the announcement as a positive move.
‘It is a process that has been going on for a while and it’s good to see it resolved – the enormity of [taking on all those matches] is huge and the ICC is understandably very protective of the quality of the service so went through a thorough tender process,’ he said.
‘IMG is obviously a big name in their business so to have the power of that group behind it is impressive, but the exposure it brings is the big thing.
‘Where we have been able to do our own streaming for events such as the Isle of Man’s visit last summer, we have done so, but the ICC own the rights to their tournaments and by doing live streaming of pathways events through their partners on a global platform it will, hopefully, bring them to a much larger audience and we can do things with that in terms of attracting sponsors etc.’
Guernsey’s scheduled trip to Finland later this year is one of the qualifying events for the Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 and would be one of the tournaments broadcast, as would the subsequent European final.
Jersey host the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Challenge League later this year and that would also see all matches streamed live.
‘We are delighted to be partnering with IMG to deliver more cricket to more fans than ever before,’ said ICC chief executive Manu Sawhney.
‘This is a significant step forward for our sport and increases the size of our platform globally, which supports our long-term ambitions for greater sustainability for all of our members.
‘Associate members have long identified that broadcasting international cricket would provide a significant opportunity for growth and raise the profile of our sport in non-traditional heartlands and we are excited by the potential of this partnership.
‘The deal which provides broadcast coverage for 541 pathway event matches across three ICC World Cups will display the growth of high-quality associate member national teams showcasing fiercely competitive and entertaining cricket in new markets.
‘Throughout the process we received substantial interest in acquiring the rights, but our preferred supplier was IMG due to their extensive experience in this field and they will provide us with the best opportunity for global viewership.’
