Manchester Originals To Challenge Man United And Man City? New Owners Lay Out Plans For Dream Project

Sanjiv Goenka-owned RPSG Group has agreed to buy a 70 per cent stake in Manchester Originals, the Lancashire County Cricket Club have confirmed. This will be the entity's third cricket team after Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL and Durban Super Giants in the SA20.

Manchester Originals Became The Latest Hundred Franchise To Sell Its Stakes

The development came on the back of a substantial stake sale by another Hundred franchise Oval Invincibles to the owners of the Mumbai Indians. The 70 per cent stake is reportedly valued at around £80 million and it will help Lancashire to raise funds to improve their current infrastructure at the Old Trafford.

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Shashwat Goenka, the vice-chairman of RPSG spoke of his dream to compete with the likes of Manchester City and Manchester United, two massive sporting powerhouses in the world currently. As quoted by the Mirror he said,  'We are not football, we are cricket. This is not about football fans, this is about cricket fans and we want the Manchester franchise in the Hundred to become the third biggest sports team in Manchester and challenge those two sports teams in Manchester.'

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IPL Has Seen A Rise In Popularity

Franchise cricket has seen a boom all over the world and the Hundred's unique format has seen the league being a huge success. Following the footsteps of IPL and BBL, the Hundred is expected to cash in on its popularity. LSG have been one of the most popular IPL teams in recent times and in a bid to taste success, they appointed Rishabh Pant, who happens to be the most expensive player in the competition's history, as their captain for IPL 2025. The city of Manchester has been a sports hub for the last few decades and the new partnership could see Manchester Originals getting back at the top of their game.