CRICKET:Irish cricket received a major financial boost yesterday with the announcement that England have agreed to play three one-day internationals here over the next six years.
The multimillion-euro media-rights deal struck between the Irish Cricket Union (ICU) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) will also see Ireland participate in the English domestic structure for the foreseeable future. Crucially the deal will see the ICU receive a fixed minimum financial guarantee over the six years, in return for handing over a large chunk of their media rights. The ECB will also pay a grant towards the development of the game here.
The three ODIs against England will take place here in 2009, 2011 and 2013. Ireland made their debut at ODI level against England at Stormont in 2006, losing by 38 runs in front of a sell-out crowd at the Belfast venue.
Commenting on the agreement ICU chief executive Warren Deutrom said: "We are absolutely delighted that we have reached an agreement with the ECB . . . The ECB have been strong supporters of ours for a number of years and it was a logical step to enter into a more formal agreement.
"Having England play in Ireland in 2009, 2011 and 2013 will give the game a huge boost and I am sure our cricketing public will be looking forward to welcoming the English team."
David Collier, the ECB chief executive, commented: "We have a strong relationship with the Irish Cricket Union and we are delighted to have reached this agreement.
"The ODIs with Ireland will create a lot of interest and the participation in our domestic competitions by the Ireland team will help build on the outstanding achievements of the Ireland team in last year's World Cup."
Deutrom believes the deal will also help the ICU in their bid to increase revenues to keep up with the growing financial demands on the Union after last year's successes at the World Cup.
"The true potential of this comes in the fact that we can have spin-offs in terms of potential team and event sponsors interested over multiple-year deals, instead of just a year-by-year basis. That's really what our commercial strategy is looking to do at the moment.
"We are also going to be able to plan financially to a certain extent, because the finances coming from ECB make a huge difference and make us less reliant on public funds, as welcome as they are."
The two governing bodies have also agreed to ensure the compatibility of television contracts for the two countries, a move put in place to avoid a clash in fixture scheduling.
That issue came to a head last summer when the ICU struck a deal with the Indian television network Nimbus for coverage of the Tri-Nations tournament between Ireland, India and South Africa in Belfast, a series that clashed with England's ODI games against West Indies.
At the time, the ECB expressed dissatisfaction and were believed to be considering expelling Ireland from the Friends Provident Trophy.
That issue was subsequently resolved, while yesterday's announcement rubber-stamped Ireland's ongoing participation in the competition.
Ireland get their campaign underway with a televised home game against Nottinghamshire on April 27th at Castle Avenue, Clontarf.
