KKR owners eye The Hundred return if expansion brings two new franchises

Knight Riders Group, the ownership entity behind Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, pursued a stake in The Hundred when the ECB opened up its eight franchises to outside investment, but pulled out of the process for Trent Rockets after concluding the Nottingham-based side had been priced above fair value. The group did not proceed with a formal offer.

Todd Boehly, the Chelsea co-owner, and his business partner Jonathan Goldstein moved in through their vehicle Cain International, which acquired a 49 per cent share in Trent Rockets for a figure just below £40 million. Knight Riders Group has since signalled that its interest in English cricket is not finished. The group has made clear it would re-enter the bidding process if the ECB chooses to add two franchises to The Hundred, lifting the total from eight to ten. There is no active bid from the group at present, and the ECB has not announced any formal expansion plan.

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Conversations about taking The Hundred beyond its current eight-team format have already occurred, though no decision has been reached. Durham has come up as a candidate city for one of the potential new sides. In the south west of England, both Bristol and Taunton have been identified as possible homes for a second expansion franchise, giving the competition broader geographic reach across the country.

The conditional nature of Knight Riders Group's position is worth underlining. Any return to the table depends entirely on expansion being approved and on a franchise being made available at a valuation the group regards as reasonable. Neither condition is currently met.

The ECB's broadcast arrangement with Sky extends to the end of 2028, and a structural overhaul of The Hundred before that cycle concludes is considered unlikely. The earliest point at which additional teams could join the competition is therefore 2029, once a new rights deal is in place.

England is the one significant market absent from the Knight Riders Group map. The group's portfolio currently spans Trinbago Knight Riders in the Caribbean Premier League, Abu Dhabi Knight Riders competing in the UAE's ILT20 tournament, and Los Angeles Knight Riders in Major League Cricket across the United States, alongside Kolkata Knight Riders as its flagship IPL franchise.

Several existing Hundred clubs already carry IPL-linked ownership, among them Sunrisers Leeds, Manchester Super Giants, MI London and Southern Brave. A Knight Riders presence in an expanded competition would extend that pattern further, should the ECB ultimately decide to grow the tournament.