GMR Group, co-owners of Delhi Capitals and owners of Hampshire, have secured ownership of Hundred franchise Southern Brave, concluding the ECB’s process of selling equity.
Southern Brave was in any case expected to go GMR as the conglomerate are the majority stakeholder of host county Hampshire, having bought out former owner Rod Bransgrove last year.
Southern Brave play their home games at Hampshire’s Utilita Bowl. In The Hundred, Southern Brave are one of the most successful teams. They won the men’s competition in 2021 by beating Birmingham Phoenix in the final. In 2023, they emerged victorious in the women’s competition, getting the better of Northern Superchargers.
In September 2024, it was reported that GMR Group were keen on investing in Southern Brave after they had secured the Hampshire deal.
It takes the number of Hundred teams bought into by IPL owners to four, after Northern Superchargers (Sun Group), Manchester Originals (RPSG Group) and Oval Invincibles (Reliance).
The fact that two other teams – London Spirit and Welsh Fire – are owned by Indian origin entrepreneurs – a consortium of Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs and Washington Freedon owner Sanjay Govil, means that The Hundred is now essentially an India-run show. Only two team – Birmingham Phoenix (Knighthead Capital) and Trent Rockets (Cain International) – have gone to investors without an Indian connection.
