Between Wickets | Whatever the sport, the threat of disruption is ever present

A combination of sponsors’ deep pockets, television, and players seeking the highest bidder for their skills is irresistible and influences the direction a sport takes

As European football is thrown into a tizzy by the new ‘super’ league run by rich men with the primary aim of making themselves richer, the words of the American sportswriter Dave Zirin assume relevance. “Owners in the 21st century,” he wrote, “are destroying what took more than a hundred years to build.” But there’s an old question that becomes relevant too: Whom does a sport belong to? A combination of sponsors’ deep pockets, television, and players seeking the highest bidder for their skills is irresistible and influences the direction a sport takes. Cricket has been there before.