-Government of Guyana’s contribution still unknown
By Michaelangelo Jacobus
The rapidly approaching T20 tournament, the Global Super League (GSL) has evoked lingering questions with respect to who will be footing the bill for the hosting of the inaugural edition in Guyana. To this end, Stabroek Sport sought some answers and found out that the eye-catching US$1M prize pool will be funded by funds from ticket sales, TV rights and sponsorship.
This newspaper reached out to Peter Miller, Head of PR and Communications at GSL who cleared the air surrounding the financial aspect of hosting the tournament.
“The GSL is a private enterprise and they will be paying for the costs from revenues generated from TV rights, sponsorship and ticket sales”, Miller noted.
Responding to the ‘US$1M’ question, Miller said “this prize pool is being generated from sponsorship and TV rights revenue and from investment from the league”.
While the tournament was sprung as a surprise announcement at the innings break of the recently concluded CPL final at the Providence Stadium in Guyana, no further information aside from the participating teams and fixtures were released to the public.
Asked about the sale of tickets, Miller told Stabroek Sports; “The tournament will be utilising the existing ticketing structures that are in place for the Guyana Amazon Warriors matches with prices in line with those that have been charged for GAW home matches”.
Furthermore, Miller revealed that while TV deals are still “a work in progress”, the tournament will be shown in the home territories of all competing teams. The GSL, which is sanctioned by Cricket West Indies, is purported to enjoy the full support of the Government of Guyana. However, their role still remains unclear with the government yet to come out with a public statement or information relevant to their role in the GSL. This is according to Miller, who responded with “Not that I have seen” when asked if the government has made anything official in terms of its contribution to the GSL.
Despite the government’s contribution being unknown at the point, Miller is confident that they “will be a key partner in the delivery of GSL, especially around getting players, staff and equipment into Guyana.
The team working on GSL have a lot of experience of delivering cricket in the country. The GSL will be working hard to showcase Guyana as a destination and encourage overseas fans to visit”.
The GSL is slated to get underway on November 26 with the Guyana Amazon Warriors taking on Pakistan Super League side Lahore Qalandars in the opening match. The T20 competition will see participation from Hampshire Hawks (T20 Blast), Rangpur Riders (BPL), and Victoria (Australia state team). The inaugural edition will see 11 games, inclusive of the final, played across 11 days with the top two teams securing berths in the final, on December 7. The event which is set to be an annual event will feature different teams from around the world each year with the Providence National Stadium, the venue for all games.
