ECB forecasts losses of up to £50m in 2027, the year it hosts Australia for the Ashes
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) expects to lose as much as £50m in 2027, even though it hosts Australia for the Ashes that year. County executives were told last week, according to The Guardian.
That would be a sharp reversal. The ECB posted a profit of £12.6m in 2025, a year underpinned by a five-Test series against India. The board had already warned in its 2025 accounts, published in May, that it expected a "significant loss" in 2027, because England will not host India at home that year.
Cricket's money mostly comes from broadcasters, and the ICC, the sport's global governing body, is adding to the pressure. It has decided to hold back part of the broadcast payments it was due to hand to its members in 2027. Its 12 full members would normally receive a larger, back-loaded payment in the final year of the current media cycle, and that year coincides with the men's 50-over World Cup.
The pressure starts with Disney Star. The broadcaster paid US$3bn (£2.2bn) for the ICC's media rights in India between 2023 and 2027, and sought to exit that deal after its 2024 merger with Reliance Industries and Viacom18. Meanwhile, the ECB's own six-year deal with Sony Pictures is worth $250m (£185m) and runs out in 2028. Channel 9's deal for exclusive rights to Australia's tours of England in 2027 and 2031 is worth $27.5m (£20.2m) to the ECB.
The wider county game is feeling it too. Ten of the 18 first-class counties recorded losses in their most recently published accounts, according to the same report. The ECB's 2027 accounting period runs until 31 January 2028, so the final figure is still open.
ECB sources have privately accepted that the projected loss is large. They are, however, hopeful the figure can be brought down to around £35m. Nothing has been confirmed, and the forecast is a projection rather than a result.
For fans, the headline may sound strange. The Ashes is one of the sport's biggest contests, and a full Test summer at home usually brings crowds and cash. The money, though, depends on which teams play which fixtures, and on who is paying for the rights to show them. Those are the numbers the board is now wrestling with.
Growth elsewhere in the game is continuing. The ECB has committed £8m a year in new funding for women's domestic cricket by 2027, bringing total annual investment to around £19m, according to its State of Equity in Cricket report from November 2025.
What comes next is a matter of negotiation. The board's rights talks, the ICC's payment decision and the county finances will all shape how the 2027 figures look once the accounts close.
