Cricket Australia (CA) today released its Annual Report for 2025-26
Source:Cricket Australia – CA Multicultural Media (eLanka)
• Cricket Australia has reported record revenue of $601.1 million and a net surplus of $81.8 million for the 2025-26 financial year, reflecting strong commercial performance, record audiences and the success of a blockbuster international season.
• The revenue increases were largely driven by the media rights agreements associated with the Men’s Ashes Series against England and the Men’s white ball series against India, and a year-on-year increase of $30m in commercial revenue.
• These events generated record levels of media, commercial and match day revenue, while ongoing focus on cost management supported improved profitability.
• Surplus from Operations for the year ended 30 June 2026 was $208.6m, an improvement of $99.0m on the previous year.
• The net surplus of $81.8m for the year ended 30 June 2026, after funding to members, was an improvement of $93.2m on the prior year.
• Funding to members increased $5.8m to $126.8m, reflecting our commitment to supporting the growth of cricket across Australia.
• CA closed the year with cash, cash equivalents and invested term deposits totalling $87.5m which will support losses forecast in the next two years of the cycle.
• Losses are forecast for 2026-27 and 2027-28 due to a cyclical decline in media rights and match revenues in line with the international touring schedule.
• With this in mind, CA remains focused on managing costs, driving revenue opportunities and continuing a controlled market process for private investment in Big Bash clubs.
• CA continued the “thrive” phase of our five-year strategy which focuses on cricket achieving its full potential and maximising positive impact at home and abroad.
• Australia’s national teams achieved outstanding results including the men’s team retaining the Ashes with a 4-1 home victory and the women’s team winning a seventh ICC T20 World Cup beating England in the final at Lord’s.
• Forthcoming highlights include the 150th Anniversary Test (March 11-15, 2027), cricket’s inclusion in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and co-hosting the ICC men’s T20 World Cup in October 2028 with New Zealand.
• Registered participation in cricket grew to 670,183. There were again significant increases in the number of registrations by women and girls (+7%), while for the first time more than 150,000 children aged 5-12 years-old registered to play cricket
• A number of attendance records were broken with the Ashes attracting 859,580 people on 18 days at an average of 47,754. The MCG hosted its greatest cricket attendance of 94,199 on Boxing Day and the SCG broke its Test record total attendance with 211,032 people attending the five days
• The daily average TV and streaming audience of 1.763 million made the Ashes the most viewed series in the Foxtel and Seven simulcast broadcast era, up 20% on the successful Border-Gavaskar Series.
• The BBL|15 and WBBL|11 attracted a total attendance of 1,089,043, up 12% on the previous season. The BBL was the most watched sports league in Australia on a per game basis with an average of 808,000 viewers including 13 matches which averaged more than one million viewers.
• The three directors due for re-election David Boon, Dr Vanessa Guthrie and Richard Freudenstein were re-elected.
• David Boon’s nomination as Interim Chair was confirmed following Mike Baird stepping down as Chair.
• Ed Cowan succeeded Mike Baird as the CNSW nominated Director.
Cowan brings enormous cricket experience to the Board having played 18 Tests for Australia and 143 First Class matches including stints with Tasmania, NSW, Gloucestershire and Nottinghamshire. He is a Life Member of the Sydney University Cricket Club.
A member of the Cricket NSW Board since 2018, Cowan holds a Master of Applied Finance, Macquarie University and Bachelor Commerce (Accounting and Finance), Sydney University. He currently works with growth equity investment firm TDM Growth Partners and has long-time experience in investing and helping scale technology and consumer businesses globally.
Mike Baird, CA Chair said:
“I am delighted that we have achieved record revenue and a significant surplus this year.
“While this is in large part due to the cyclical nature of our revenue from the Ashes and India Men’s white ball series, it also reflects the enormous efforts across the organisation to grow revenue and manage costs.
“We witnessed one of the great summers in Australian Cricket with the Ashes attracting record crowds and viewing audiences, superb performances by our men’s and women’s teams and continued growth and excitement in the BBL and WBBL.
“This showcased the very best of our game and its enduring connection with our passionate fans and communities, and continued to inspire further increases in participation among 5-12 year-olds, women and girls and junior cricketers.
“At the same time, we have acted assertively to meet the challenges we face in ensuring we retain the capacity to field the best teams and create the best playing opportunities in the face of crowded schedules, rising costs and challenging global commercial and broadcast markets.
“This included proceeding with an opt-in model for private investment in Big Bash clubs which will grow our leagues and provide a reliable source of funding for all aspects of our game from grassroots cricket to our world-leading elite teams.
“While there has been robust debate across the game, I am eternally grateful for the support I have had as Chair from our State and Territory partners who share the commitment to ensuring cricket remains Australia’s national sport for generations to come.
“It has been a privilege and pleasure to serve the game on the local and global stage as a director of both Cricket NSW and Cricket Australia, and I leave confident that under Interim Chair David Boon we have the leadership and capability to thrive and prosper on and off the field.”
Todd Greenberg, Cricket Australia CEO, said:
“The record revenue and large forecast surplus represents an excellent performance in a year in which we faced considerable challenges including the revenue lost due to the two-day Ashes Tests in Perth and Melbourne.
“We have now entered a challenging part of the financial cycle due to the nature of the international touring schedule and our media rights and other commercial arrangements and also rising costs.
“We continue to make every effort to address these challenges to ensure we remain at the forefront of world cricket including exploring private investment in the Melbourne Renegades.
“Australian cricket’s greatest advantage continues to be our brilliant national teams that are the result of healthy grassroots participation and world class elite pathways and high-performance systems. We remain dedicated to working with the States and Territories to maintain and enhance cricket at every level.”
“I would like to thank our commercial, broadcast, government, stadium and charitable partners for their strong support of the game, and for helping us deliver fantastic experiences for fans and participants across the country.”
ENDS
At eLanka, we respect the rights of creators. If we have used an image you own and you’d like it removed, please email us at info@elanka.com.au and we’ll handle it promptly.
Thanks.
eLanka team
eLanka Disclaimer
Content published on eLanka may be created by the eLanka team, submitted by contributors or third parties, reproduced or adapted from other sources with appropriate source acknowledgement, or provided as promotional/advertising material by our clients. While eLanka takes reasonable care in preparing and publishing content, we do not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Views expressed are those of the respective authors or contributors and do not necessarily represent the views of eLanka. Third-party contributors, content providers and advertisers are responsible for the accuracy of material they supply and for ensuring they hold the necessary rights and permissions for its publication. Advertising and promotional content should not be regarded as an endorsement by eLanka of any product, service or claim.
