Yorkshire need investment to keep Test matches - CEO

Yorkshire could face the "disaster" of losing Test matches and will not be able to compete at the top level of English cricket unless they end 163 years of being a members-run club, says chief executive Sanjay Patel.

The White Rose county is urging members and supporters to get behind their 10-year Chasing Glory strategy, which Patel says will allow outside investment to turn Headingley into the prime Test venue outside London, and keep the first team competitive.

Patel told BBC Radio Leeds that last year's sale of the Northern Superchargers Hundred franchise has put the club on an even keel financially, with £60m of the £100m proceeds going towards payment of debts and cash flow, with around £15m being placed in the subsidiary Headingley Investments.

"One of the big pillars was the regeneration of Headingley," he said. "We want to make sure this ground hosts major international cricket in a meaningful way in the future.

"If you look at our allocation over the next three years, from a men's point of view it's not very good. We do not have a Test match in 2027, so we lose out on the Ashes we don't have one in 2028 and in 2029 we've got the Test match that sits outside the India series.

"That is not a sustainable position for us to be in from a business model point of view, and it's also not great for cricket in Yorkshire.

"We need to make sure this ground has the best international cricket played here every single year. The only way we are going to do that is regenerate Headingley.

"That costs a lot of money and we need to raise considerable amounts of capital. We cannot borrow and allow the club to get back into the financial positions it was in, in the past.

"The only way to do that, we believe, is to demutualise, generate external investments and use those proceeds to reinvest back into the ground.

Patel added there would be a consultation period of six to nine months to explain the situation to members and said a change would "benefit cricket in Yorkshire".

"I believe there's an unbelievable opportunity to utilise the clear assets cricket has in this county, and one of the ways we have to do that is to find external investment," he said.

"If we find external investment, with everything cricket has in this county, it's unlimited in terms of the opportunity."

If members rejected the proposals then Patel said the county would "still be in a good place" and had "made sure we're in a place where we're financially sustainable".

"Do I think we will get the right major match allocations in terms of hosting international cricket on a sustainable basis? No I don't think we will, and I think that will be a real disaster for cricket in Yorkshire," he said.

"Do I think we will be able to fully compete on the field, in terms of where wages are going and the way there will be a top tier in terms of counties? We will definitely not be in that top tier, and our ambition here is to ensure that Yorkshire County Cricket Club sits at the top table of cricket in England and Wales."

He said that there have been no talks with potential investors, although the process of selling the Hundred franchise meant there were conversations which "led to what the club might look like in two or three years' time.

"There are definitely interested parties but we haven't started that process just now," he said.

On the need for redevelopment of the 136-year-old ground, he added: "This ground has had iconic cricket moments over the years and we'd love it to have iconic facilities as well.

"It needs major redevelopment in pretty much every part of the ground, apart from one of our stands.

"I do believe we need to increase capacity, I do think we need to improve our player facilities, and we need to improve the experience for fans. Increasing capacity will definitely be on top of the list."

That would also lend itself to "revenue diversification" which he has previously said could include the hosting of concerts, so that the club does not rely on two Test matches over a five-year period to generate a profit.

Members should not be fearful that the emphasis will sway from being a cricket club to being a business concern, he said:

"They are not mutually exclusive. In order to be a successful cricket club you need to have a successful business model.

"We are a cricket club at heart and will always remain a cricket club. The history and heritage of cricket in this county is phenomenal. The number of players it has produced to go and play for England, and the trophies it has won - that is our purpose, why we wake up in the morning."

Patel added that there will be members groups and an advisory group set up as part of communication plan for members to explain the rationale behind demutualisation.