England set for £50m series

Billionaire banker wants West Indies all-stars Twenty20 tour

By Simon Dilger   Last updated: 19th April 2008

Owais Shah England v West Indies Twenty20 Oval 2007

England v West Indies: £50m

The money is real.

Sir Allen Stanford
Quotes of the week

Related links

Teams

Also see

England could play host to a multi-million pound, five match Twenty20 series against a West Indies all-star side it has been revealed.

Rumours of the series come hot on the heels of the news this week that the England and Wales Cricket board (ECB) were 'very likely' to accept around £10 million for a one-off match in the Caribbean.

The match would be the richest single game in the sport's history, meaning a five match series could net the ECB as much as £50 million.

The idea is the brainchild of billionaire Texas banker Sir Allen Stanford who finances the Stanford 20/20 Tournament in the West Indies.

Stanford is keen to expand the concept and has already held talks with ECB chief executive David Collier.

"I talked to David about the first game and then how we could collaborate in the future," he told The Times.

"I said that it could be an annual event, maybe we could come to Lord's in 2009 and then alternate. I would be happy to make a five-year commitment."

Asked if that meant a total input of $100 million (£50m), he said: "I would be willing to do it.

"The money is real and I think we will get a game. David is a great guy and we seem to be on the same page."

Stanford wants England to play five Twenty20 games against his West Indies all-star side, the first to coincide with Independence Day in Antigua on November 1.