Chelsea owner Todd Boehly has reportedly bought another English team as his Cain International group become minority shareholders of Nottingham cricket franchise Trent Rockets
Chelsea owner Todd Boehly has reportedly bought a minority stake in another English team.
The Blues’ owner is the co-founder of Cain International, with Chelsea director Jonathan Goldstein, who have purchased a minority share in the Nottingham-based Hundred franchise Trent Rockets for almost £40million.
According to The Telegraph, the Trent Bridge team were valued at £79million at auction, with Cain – working alongside private equity firm Ares Management – buying a 49 per cent stake. The majority 51 per cent stake will remain controlled by Nottinghamshire CCC.
It’s reported that the auction opened at £60million with Boehly’s group beating Indian Premier League franchise Kolkata Knight Riders and Indian businessman Amit Jain in a bidding war.
Trent Rockets became the seventh franchise to be sold as part of the England and Wales Cricket Board’s auction process of the Hundred teams since the inaugural edition of the cricket tournament in July 2021. The running total of valuations of Hundred franchises is now beyond £850m with Southampton-based Southern Brave’s sale to take place on Wednesday.
Boehly has eventually made his mark in the Hundred franchise having previously been interested in purchasing both London franchises – London Spirit and Oval Invincibles – but he was outbid.
The American businessman led a consortium that bought Chelsea for £4.25billion in May 2022 and became chairman at Stamford Bridge.
Boehly’s impact on the Blues and the Premier League has been seismic with his spending power and controversial plans to offer players massive contracts and partnership with French club Strasbourg, seeing fans on social media poke fun at his latest investment.
One fan on X quipped: “Does he know there’s a limit on players a squad can have?!” A second joked: “Clever, few games on loan at Strasbourg and he’ll be able to flip for a profit.” While a third added: “He’ll probably try and sign the entire Oval Invincibles on 15-year contracts.