The Pakistan Cricket Board is searching for a consultant to help it with its media rights sales for home international matches in the 2020-23 period. The board has issued a tender, with bids due by May 14.
PCB chairman Ehsan Mani recently admitted that the board feared a drop in media rights income in the new cycle due to the economic pressures being faced by broadcasters, advertisers and sponsors.
The board’s inability to play home matches against India, due to diplomatic tensions between the two countries, has hit the value of its media rights. It was reported to have missed out on $80mn (€73mn) to $90m (€82mn) of media rights revenue during the 2015-2020 period that was contingent upon it playing home matches against India.
The board is reported to be including a clause in its next media rights deals to prevent a repeat of the situation earlier this year where its content was distributed without its knowledge to an online betting company. The PCB was heavily criticised for this in Pakistan, where betting is illegal.
The PCB has also announced it has set aside funds to support its first-class cricketers and other stakeholders who have been facing hardship in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. Those qualifying for support will include first-class cricketers who featured in the 2018-19 season and played at least 15 first-class matches in the five seasons from 2014-15 to 2018-19; ground staff with at least eight years of service; and match officials and scorers who have officiated in PCB-organised events over the past two seasons.