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Clive Lloyd, the former captain of the West Indies cricket team, has expressed strong criticism of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) global revenue distribution system, calling for urgent action to address the imbalance in funding. Lloyd’s remarks suggest that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) may be disproportionately benefiting from the ICC’s revenue shares.
In a separate development, Lloyd was honored with the ‘Order of the Caribbean Community (OCC)’—the highest accolade in the Caribbean region. This award recognizes Caribbean nationals who have made exceptional contributions to the economic, political, social, and cultural advancements of the Caribbean. The esteemed cricketer received this prestigious recognition in Grenada.
Clive Lloyd criticizes the ICC and demands a ‘fair share’ for the West Indies.
Upon receiving the award, Clive Lloyd called on the ICC to address what he sees as financial inequality affecting the West Indies. In his acceptance speech, Lloyd highlighted the disparity in the revenue model and pointed out that, despite the West Indies’ dominance in cricket’s heyday, they did not benefit financially. He questioned the ICC about the uneven distribution of funds between the Big Three and other cricket boards.
“Now that the global game is on a sounder fiscal footing, he argued, it is time for the Windies to get their fair share,” Lloyd was quoted as saying by Barbados Today.
“Over the years in our ascendancy, we did not ask for any extra money. But now I’m told when they have the distribution of funds at the ICC, England receives $180 million, Australia $180 million, India $180 million, and we are $80 million. I want to know, where do they get this disparity?” he argued.
Lloyd also remarked that during the West Indies’ peak, other teams eagerly sought to compete against them because such matches were financially advantageous. He urged the ICC to extend support to the West Indies, emphasizing their current difficult circumstances.
“Because when we were leading, everybody wanted to play – we were playing two tours in the winter. We were the cash cow for these guys. But now that we might be a little down in the dumps, nobody now is saying, well you know West Indies do need some help,” the legendary West Indies captain said.
What does the current ICC revenue distribution model entail?
The ICC’s revenue distribution model, reinstated in 2015, allocates shares to cricket boards based on their contribution to the ICC’s revenue from their respective countries. Currently, approximately 90 percent of the ICC’s revenue comes from India, with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) receiving a substantial 39 percent of the total.
Clive Lloyd, the captain of the West Indies’ 1975 and 1979 World Cup-winning teams, has urged Cricket West Indies (CWI) to question the ICC about securing a fair share of the revenue for the West Indies.
“And I think that it’s about time that our board men make a special call to the ICC. Send 10 or 12 people who we know have the pull, and that extra that is needed, to tell them that we need some special dispensation,” Clive Lloyd was quoted as saying by Barbados Today.
Clive Lloyd captained the West Indies to victory in the 1975 and 1979 Cricket World Cups and also guided the team to the final in 1983, where they were defeated by India and finished as runners-up. Under his leadership, the West Indies were at their peak, featuring some of the greatest cricketers of all time.
