County Championship Reduction For 2026?

[Fleagle]

Untrue.
Given that there's ongoing discussion which has been continuing for 4 months so we don't know whether it's a good deal until agreement has been reached on the terms of the buy out. The impasse is over tv deals which are worth £billions. One off £500m but hand over the bulk of tv revenue forever doesn't appear such a clever deal to me. There 's a further demand that no England games be played during the Hundred window i.e. high summer which will serious erode test match revenue.
It may well be a disastrous deal.
I'm sorry but I liken your elation to that of a kid in a sweet shop.

They already keep it clear of test matches, don’t they? They certainly have for the last three years. The test matches generally abut closely to the Hundred window (the last India Test this year has its fifth day scheduled the day before the Hundred starts, the first Sri Lanka test last year was two days after the final) but they keep it free.

I assume they have data on how much it affects revenue.

 

[Parkside]

Meanwhile,back to the thread title.
Cricketer newsletter reporting on counties agree shortlist proposals for restructure and begin discussing them in groups of three. 14 CC games is still in the table

They already keep it clear of test matches, don’t they? They certainly have for the last three years. The test matches generally abut closely to the Hundred window (the last India Test this year has its fifth day scheduled the day before the Hundred starts, the first Sri Lanka test last year was two days after the final) but they keep it free.

I assume they have data on how much it affects revenue.

That data will be readily available but whether it will be out in the public domain is the relevant issue.

Meanwhile,back to the thread title.
Cricketer newsletter reporting on counties agree shortlist proposals for restructure and begin discussing them in groups of three. 14 CC games is still in the table

That data will be readily available but whether it will be out in the public domain is the relevant issue.

Logically playing games in the holiday season would have greater appeal than playing in September

 

[Raymondo]

Meanwhile,back to the thread title.
Cricketer newsletter reporting on counties agree shortlist proposals for restructure and begin discussing them in groups of three. 14 CC games is still in the table

That data will be readily available but whether it will be out in the public domain is the relevant issue.

Logically playing games in the holiday season would have greater appeal than playing in September

The three division idea is awful like, just awful. Why can’t the administrators see that the time England have been the most successful in Tests came right off the back of having two divisions of 9, with 16 games each.

Thankfully Surrey (god bless them) understand this and that is their preference so I’m lead to believe.

 

[Parkside]

The three division idea is awful like, just awful. Why can’t the administrators see that the time England have been the most successful in Tests came right off the back of having two divisions of 9, with 16 games each.

Thankfully Surrey (god bless them) understand this and that is their preference so I’m lead to believe.

There are 6 representative on the reorganisation committee and each will hold discussions with 3 separate counties,it's not referring to a 3 division county championship. Those 6 reps will then reconvene and prepare a final resolution to put to all 18 county reps.

 

[Raymondo]

There are 6 representative on the reorganisation committee and each will hold discussions with 3 separate counties,it's not referring to a 3 division county championship. Those 6 reps will then reconvene and prepare a final resolution to put to all 18 county reps.

As I understand it, it’s a two-tiered system with three ‘conferences’ - that still sounds awful.

 

[Parkside]

As I understand it, it’s a two-tiered system with three ‘conferences’ - that still sounds awful.

I'm afraid whilst the elephant in the room i.e. 16.4 exists a reduction in the CC programme is inevitable. The only hope is that they cease with the folly before bankruptcy.

 

[Ghfd]

I’d put money on the 16.4 going to the full t20 when the Indian owners get fully involved

They may even god forbid allow Indian players to come over to play

Then the big Indian tv firms will come into play and we will get the Indian comms from the ipl involved


In future as well I suspect players will sign up for franchises owned by the Indian major clubs and play in the various comps around the world, where they already have club affiliates


To me that’s a matter of time and we shall see

 

[Voice of fair play]

I’d put money on the 16.4 going to the full t20 when the Indian owners get fully involved

They may even god forbid allow Indian players to come over to play

Then the big Indian tv firms will come into play and we will get the Indian comms from the ipl involved


In future as well I suspect players will sign up for franchises owned by the Indian major clubs and play in the various comps around the world, where they already have club affiliates


To me that’s a matter of time and we shall see

I also think it will be changed to T20 which it should have been in the first place.

T20 has proven to be a successful product so silly really to change it, and fully agree only a matter of time before changed back, in fact hope new owners insist on it

 

[Parkside]

I’d put money on the 16.4 going to the full t20 when the Indian owners get fully involved

They may even god forbid allow Indian players to come over to play

Then the big Indian tv firms will come into play and we will get the Indian comms from the ipl involved


In future as well I suspect players will sign up for franchises owned by the Indian major clubs and play in the various comps around the world, where they already have club affiliates


To me that’s a matter of time and we shall see

Very much depends on whether there's an appetite in the long term for franchise cricket in countries outside India

 

[Fleagle]

Meanwhile,back to the thread title.
Cricketer newsletter reporting on counties agree shortlist proposals for restructure and begin discussing them in groups of three. 14 CC games is still in the table

That data will be readily available but whether it will be out in the public domain is the relevant issue.

Logically playing games in the holiday season would have greater appeal than playing in September

The last bit is true up to a point. But there is a balance to be struck between the three formats. At the moment at least, test matches sell more or less regardless and so are probably better off played in June and July when the light and weather is best. White ball is the one that should be the gateway drug for kids and so should logically be the focus of the school holidays. And much as I might dislike it since I personally am one of the few, the championship therefore gets shunted to the shoulder because it wouldn’t attract that many people even if it was at the height of Summer.

There’s arguably not too much wrong with the present balance of priorities other than the fact that August is focused on the franchise tournament rather than a real one

 

[Bri]

I’d put money on the 16.4 going to the full t20 when the Indian owners get fully involved

They may even god forbid allow Indian players to come over to play

Then the big Indian tv firms will come into play and we will get the Indian comms from the ipl involved


In future as well I suspect players will sign up for franchises owned by the Indian major clubs and play in the various comps around the world, where they already have club affiliates


To me that’s a matter of time and we shall see

Maybe that is the only hope for County Cricket. The Hunnerd goes T20, which has already been mooted, and then we have 2 T20 tournaments so they merge leaving space for CC. Even so, it feels like the County Championship won't be out of danger.

Money makes the world go around, trite but true, and 1st class cricket doesn't have enough.

 

[Raymondo]

I'm afraid whilst the elephant in the room i.e. 16.4 exists a reduction in the CC programme is inevitable. The only hope is that they cease with the folly before bankruptcy.

I disagree, it’s easy to be led down a path of thinking that’s the case I concede, but since our last day of Championship cricket we’ve played 6 games of T20 in 23 days, that’s 17 days without a game of cricket.

Now of course I understand that travel days are tough on players and there needs to be practice days and more importantly rest days, but this years T20 window has seen such a scattergun schedule with no semblance of cohesion that suggests to me (and I’ve thought this for some time) that the main problem isn’t the amount of cricket but the times that it’s played.

Durham play two Championship games in this supposed T20 window, followed by another three weeks of T20 cricket. It’s absurd. The T20 competition should be played altogether, all at once. Messing about with schedules like that harms the counties, because they’ve got to pay overseas T20 specialists to sit around doing nothing.

The T20 should be done and dusted from start to finals day in no more than a 6 week window. Now personally I feel that window should start on July 1st, but I’ll happily accept June 1st as a backup plan!

 

[Voice of fair play]

The last bit is true up to a point. But there is a balance to be struck between the three formats. At the moment at least, test matches sell more or less regardless and so are probably better off played in June and July when the light and weather is best. White ball is the one that should be the gateway drug for kids and so should logically be the focus of the school holidays. And much as I might dislike it since I personally am one of the few, the championship therefore gets shunted to the shoulder because it wouldn’t attract that many people even if it was at the height of Summer.

There’s arguably not too much wrong with the present balance of priorities other than the fact that August is focused on the franchise tournament rather than a real one

Well yes exactly, it doesn’t have to be 100 balls it should be T20, but in this modern cricket world there was always a inevitability they would be a showcase short format tournament, where the focus is on it during a peak window like in every other country and in our case the peak window is August.

There is nothing to suggest that test matches would not sell out in June and July

 

[Steak Pie]

The last bit is true up to a point. But there is a balance to be struck between the three formats. At the moment at least, test matches sell more or less regardless and so are probably better off played in June and July when the light and weather is best. White ball is the one that should be the gateway drug for kids and so should logically be the focus of the school holidays. And much as I might dislike it since I personally am one of the few, the championship therefore gets shunted to the shoulder because it wouldn’t attract that many people even if it was at the height of Summer.

There’s arguably not too much wrong with the present balance of priorities other than the fact that August is focused on the franchise tournament rather than a real one

That's the bit that is backwards.

T20 is played on evenings and weekends, there's nothing stopping kids going along. In fact, you put buses on from schools (maybe after cricket practice like at my old school.in Lanchester yesterday) and you're helping to make a brand new set of fans.

Test cricket is played in the day, if it isn't in the school holidays then school aged kids can't go.

We're making it impossible for kids to watch Test cricket, it's utterly insane. And we've blocked off the school holidays forever for this farcical tournament.

So no more Test cricket in the summer holidays ever again. People should be lined up and shot for allowing this to happen.

I disagree, it’s easy to be led down a path of thinking that’s the case I concede, but since our last day of Championship cricket we’ve played 6 games of T20 in 23 days, that’s 17 days without a game of cricket.

Now of course I understand that travel days are tough on players and there needs to be practice days and more importantly rest days, but this years T20 window has seen such a scattergun schedule with no semblance of cohesion that suggests to me (and I’ve thought this for some time) that the main problem isn’t the amount of cricket but the times that it’s played.

Durham play two Championship games in this supposed T20 window, followed by another three weeks of T20 cricket. It’s absurd. The T20 competition should be played altogether, all at once. Messing about with schedules like that harms the counties, because they’ve got to pay overseas T20 specialists to sit around doing nothing.

The T20 should be done and dusted from start to finals day in no more than a 6 week window. Now personally I feel that window should start on July 1st, but I’ll happily accept June 1st as a backup plan!

Almost as if it's by design.

 

[Parkside]

There's an obsession with the terms "showcase tournament" and "peakwindow" Domestic T20, given the publicity the 16. 4 is given,would be far more lucrative at a fraction of the cost. Youngsters are for more likely to identify with players from their own region than some supposed super star whom they would probably never heard of nor recognise and is being paid an obscene amount. T20 Costs are miniscule compared to the Hundred,profits far greater.
Income from England International Cricket is massive and to maximise this we accommodate 2 touring teams each season. This requires fixtures from May to September. It doesn't make financial sense to close off August from International cricket. We're not India with a population of greater than 1 billion ,the majority of whom are cricket fanatics.
Nor is any other country with the possible exception of the USA but initial attendances there wouldn't suggest so.
Get our players into schools,as Durham Women have today in Tynemouth,is the way to encourage youngsters to become involved.

 

[Raymondo]

Well yes exactly, it doesn’t have to be 100 balls it should be T20, but in this modern cricket world there was always a inevitability they would be a showcase short format tournament, where the focus is on it during a peak window like in every other country and in our case the peak window is August.

Wouldn’t it have been good if the UK already had such a competition prior to the invention of the 100 ball nonsense

 

[Parkside]

Wouldn’t it have been good if the UK already had such a competition prior to the invention of the 100 ball nonsense

Yes,in a "dedicated window"as a "showcase tournament" .

 

[Raymondo]

Test cricket is played in the day, if it isn't in the school holidays then school aged kids can't go.

We're making it impossible for kids to watch Test cricket, it's utterly insane. And we've blocked off the school holidays forever for this farcical tournament.

Not to mention the fact that’s it’s also completely behind a paywall.

So no more Test cricket in the summer holidays ever again. People should be lined up and shot for allowing this to happen.

Couldn’t agree more.

Get our players into schools,as Durham Women have today in Tynemouth,is the way to encourage youngsters to become involved.

Durham used to do that back in the 90’s.

 

[Parkside]

Durham used to do that back in the 90’s.

More recently than that.
Probably discontinued because of the workload caused by fixtures increased because of The 16.4.

 

[UpTheDuff]

Yeah I agree that is the concern and the unfairness the rich get richer which means the competitiveness of the competition is too heavily weighted in favour of a small number of teams much like you say in football.

Not disputing that in anyway as fuller agree.

However the money counties get all counties and recreation cricket is a hell of a lot of money too make them more sustainable that they otherwise have not got.

They will be more sustainable because of it but I agree some less competitive

Not more sustainable if the costs of trying to compete increase more than the extra income does. The same way nearly all football clubs outside the Prem are unsustainable and lose loads despite income being at record levels.