The Yorkshire County Cricket Club is delighted to announce that Sanjay Patel MBE has taken up the role of the Club’s Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) following a successful period as interim CEO.
Patel joined the Club as a Non-Executive Director in February 2024 before taking on the CEO role on an interim basis in September of last year.
Having steered the Club through its financial challenges and the sale of the Northern Superchargers, which saw The Sun Group purchase the team for £100.5 million, Patel will take the helm as Yorkshire looks to the next stage in its illustrious history.
Speaking about his appointment, Patel said: “I’m delighted to have been appointed and am looking forward to working with everyone involved with the Club as we look to define what the future looks like for us.
“When I first came to Yorkshire, it was only supposed to be for a short time, but after a turbulent year the club is in a great place, and I am excited about the potential. The passion for the game, the people and the opportunities have made this a challenge I couldn’t turn down, and I’m genuinely excited to play my part in writing the next chapter for cricket in this county.
“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the Board, our staff and players, members and supporters and everyone else that has made the least year at the Club so enjoyable. There is some brilliant work taking place that makes Yorkshire Cricket what it is, and gives me a lot of optimism for the future.
“The recent sale of the Northern Superchargers has given the Club a great opportunity, but it is now imperative that we set the business up to be financially sustainable. We’ve got a challenging couple of years coming up with no men’s Test cricket at Headingley in 2027 and 2028, which presents a significant financial challenge and is another reason for us to re-develop our business plan to ensure long-term and sustained success is achievable. I am determined to ensure our pathway for boys and girls remains strong and our Yorkshire men and women’s teams are regularly competing for silverware on the pitch.
“I’m confident that the future of the Club is bright and am looking forward to playing my part.”
Patel joined Yorkshire following a successful stint at the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), where he worked as Chief Commercial Officer and then Managing Director of The Hundred. During his time at ECB, Patel was the architect of The Hundred, where he launched and ran the competition for the first three years. The Hundred recently generated £520m of revenue for the game with the eight teams valued around £1bn.
Club Chair Colin Graves said: “We are delighted that Sanjay has agreed to take on the role of CEO at the Club and have no doubt that his impact will be game-changing.
“Having worked closely with him during my tenure as Chair at ECB and over the last year, I’ve seen first-hand the way that he operates, and I believe he is one of the best leaders in sport.
“The Club has been given a lifeline with the influx of capital from The Hundred sale, but we must now set ourselves up for long-term and sustained success, both on and off of the field. In Sanjay, we have the best possible person to drive us forward and I, alongside the rest of the Board, am looking forward to working with him in the coming years.”
