The first Women's Cricket Super League was launched by the England & Wales Cricket Board at Loughborough on Thursday in an "initiative to raise standards and interest in the sport," according to Richard Hobson of the LONDON TIMES. Although specific details are "sketchy, the franchise-based competition will begin next summer" with a backing worth £3M ($4.8M) over four years from the governing body as a six-team event that is set to include overseas players. Cricket-minded organizations are being "invited to host the sides." The announcement "represents another step forward for the women's game" following professional contracts for the leading players in '13 and the first stand-alone sponsorship deal last year, with Kia. Now there will also be "prize money for the first time in the domestic women's game in England" (LONDON TIMES, 6/18). REUTERS' Michael Hann reported the new tournament will "mirror the women's Big Bash League, which begins in Australia later this year, and will initially employ the Twenty20 game" but from '17 onward will "develop to both T20 and 50-over formats." The £3M funding will "pay for coaching and facilities as well as providing prize money over four years." ECB CEO Tom Harrison said in a statement, "We are already very proud of the achievements of the England women's team and the growth of the game for women and girls over the past decade. We now have the opportunity to build on this, inspiring more women and girls to take part and offering players a domestic structure that gives the best cricketers the chance to play against each other in the most competitive environment" (REUTERS, 6/18). In London, Simon Burnton wrote the competition was created following discussions not only with Cricket Australia but also with the FA and the England Netball Association, which is seen as being "particularly successful at attracting and involving women." The identity of the six "hosts" will be "decided over the next six months following a bidding process" that will not be limited to existing counties. The ECB is "hoping to have identified locations spread across" the U.K. It will also "rank the top 80 women cricketers in the country and map their existing addresses to see where they are currently clustered." ECB Dir of England Women's Cricket and former national captain Clare Connor said, "What’s exciting about this process for me is to see what comes back. So, will Yorkshire submit an application, and will they submit it as Yorkshire Cricket Club or as the Bradford Belles?" (GUARDIAN, 6/18). The BBC's Joe Wilson reported the plan is to "attract the world's best players to compete alongside England's leading female cricketers." Minister for Sport Tracey Crouch also "welcomed the move as 'a huge step forward for women's sport'" (BBC, 6/18)
