Who is Sir Allen Stanford and what is his Brave New World for cricket?
Tuesday, September 09, 2008 : Stanford Files, Twenty20
Sir Allen Stanford is the man financing the Stanford Super Series, the Stanford 20/20 Tournament and the re-vitalisation of West Indies as a cricketing force. A Texan by birth, but now a long-term resident of the US Virgin Islands and citizen of Antigua, he is utilising his estimated $2Billion wealth to promote the West Indies cricket team and Twenty20 cricket in particular. He believes that Twenty20 cricket can take over as the world's most popular team sport.
Listening to his BBC interview, you can't help but be impressed by the enthusiasm he displays for his vision of Twenty20 cricket. He is open about his preference for 3 hour cricket as something that can be marketed to women, children and ultimately the sports saturated market of the US. How Test Cricket will survive his brave new world is any-ones guess.
He seems to be a fan of the 'Winner Takes It All' sporting event, hence the Stanford 20/20 for 20 ($20 million). Whether he likes Abba's 'The Winner Takes it All', is another matter. The players love 'Money, Money, Money' however.
Check out his blog too. Where does he get the time?
Crash Bang Wallop: Twenty20 - A History of the Brief Game
is available from Amazon.
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