The Marylebone Cricket Club "will offer to relax its strict dress code policy in the Lord's pavilion which has stood for more than a century" in order to host games in English cricket's new Twenty20 competition, according to Nick Hoult of the London TELEGRAPH. Before traditionalists and MCC members "become too alarmed," however, the offer is "only for games in the new tournament." The club will find out next month if its bid to be a host venue for one of the eight teams "has been successful." The England & Wales Cricket Board is "demanding that host venues prove they can attract a new audience to cricket," which for the MCC will mean "throwing off its conservative image." The MCC "will promise to make members' areas open to the public including allowing children into the pavilion and abandon dress codes." The Lord's dress code for men states, "Gentlemen shall wear lounge suits or tailored jacket and trousers, shirt, tie or cravat and shoes with socks." Women must wear "dresses; or skirts or trousers (which may be cropped below the knee) or culottes, with blouses or smart tops, and formal shoes, boots or sandals." There are also plans for alcohol-free areas to attract families, "the market the ECB is targeting" and why it wants its new tournament "not to have a boozy image." The MCC is "considering allowing musical instruments into the ground for the first time" and also offering "cheap tickets for the new competition in a residents' ballot" (TELEGRAPH, 1/13).
