About ECB
The England and Wales Cricket Board was established on January 1 1997 as the single national governing body for all cricket in England and Wales. It has its headquarters at Lord’s, the home of cricket.
The formation of the ECB signalled the drive towards creating, for the first time, one single unified body responsible for the management and development of every form of cricket for men and women including clubs, schools, juniors and youth, disabilities cricket, representative, first class and international cricket.
The ECB took over the responsibilities carried out for some 30 years by the Test and County Cricket Board (TCCB), the National Cricket Association (NCA) and the Cricket Council, all of which have ceased to exist.
In April 1998 the Women’s Cricket Association (WCA) was also integrated into the organisation. The formation of the ECB followed two years of research into how cricket in England and Wales could be better organised to attract more players to the game, raise standards at all levels and promote cricket as a spectator sport.
ECB reported a 27 per cent increase in participation in club and school cricket during 2006-07, with women’s and girls' cricket recording the sharpest rise of 45 per cent.
ECB was responsible for pioneering Twenty20 cricket in the First-Class and international arena. Since the first Twenty20 tournament in 2003, the total number of spectators watching domestic cricket annually in England & Wales has increased by 21.7 per cent.
The aggregate attendance figure for international matches in England and Wales during 2007 was more than 809,000.
The increased popularity of cricket in England & Wales combined with the strength of the domestic and international game has enabled ECB to attract and retain a number of high profile commercial partners such as Vodafone, npower, NatWest, Red Bull, HUGO BOSS, Buxton and adidas (from 2008).
In February 2008, ECB announced a £30million investment in facilities and in club cricket, the most significant injection of funding ever in cricket in England and Wales.
Cricket's strategic plan - Building Partnerships
ECB unveiled the blueprint for cricket’s continued success and development over the next four years with the launch of Building Partnerships in April 2005.
Building Partnerships, which maintains the ECB’s theme of ‘From playground to Test arena’, is built on four key pillars:
- Effective leadership and governance
- Vibrant domestic game
- Enthusing participation and following, especially among young people
- Successful England teams
ECB headquarters at Lord's