Lancashire chair calls for better marketing of T20 Blast, labels it "lifeblood" of county cricket

Speaking to Lancs TV, Andy Anson addressed the futures of both the Blast and The Hundred as well as hinting Lancashire's new facility at Farington could be used to host County Championship matches in the future

Lancashire chair Andy Anson has called for "more marketing effort" to put into the T20 Blast, labelling the competition the "lifeblood financially" of county cricket. 

He also believes discussions need to be had around the Blast structure to create the best product, pinpointing the timing of the quarter-finals as a scheduling headache. 

However, he does not believe scrapping The Hundred is the solution to the problems within domestic cricket, adding "there has to be" room both competitions in the calendar.  

Speaking during an interview with Lancs TV, Anson said: "I think The Hundred has its window because the ECB is trying to make sure England and Wales has a franchise-type tournament that competes with the best in the world. The ambition isn't to be bigger than the IPL, that’s a race you're not going to win, but it's to be the second best in the world. The Blast is still vital for the counties and we've got to build it, market it, get it right.  

"There's a discussion about do you have the quarter-finals and Finals Day after The Hundred or before The Hundred? Next year it's clearly going after and we'll see how that works, but you stop the narrative of the tournament, you're going to struggle with your overseas players being in place for the latter stages.  

^{Anson believes The Hundred and the Blast can co-exist [Julian Finney/Getty Images]}

"Equally, when we have the quarter-finals straight after you've qualified, you get no chance to sell tickets, so your chance of selling out a quarter-final, which should be one of your biggest days of cricket in the calendar, you've got a window of three or four days – it's impossible. 

"What is very clear is we need to put more marketing effort in the Blast. It's worked in The Hundred."

He continued: "They could've done a much better job of creating value in the broadcasting rights for the Blast and I don't think that was done. 

"From its inception, the Blast was a great product and there was a genuine interest in it. And then there was a period when it was allowed to wane, the marketing stopped, Sky's interest in it moved away, and it lost its way a bit."

Moving forward, Anson hopes there will be an increase in the number of televised Blast games to allow the competition to "build an audience" as well as changes to its structure, moving away from North/South groups to allow counties to compete against different opposition. 

Furthermore, he is adamant the families who are drawn to The Hundred should not feel excluded from the Blast: "There was a bit of a thing at the ECB saying the Blast was all about beer and The Hundred was about kids. I think there's a place for everyone in this stadium [Old Trafford]."

Anson also addressed the issues facing the County Championship, believing the competition has "for too long" been a "development game for Test cricket", something which has contributed to the dwindling attendances.  

^{Lancashire are building a facility at Farington which Anson believes could play a role in revitalising the County Championship [Lancashire Cricket]}

While not advocating for the removal of Championship cricket from Old Trafford, nor for outgrounds, such as Blackpool and Southport, to miss out on hosting major matches, he suggested the new ground at Farington could help restore an "atmosphere" at red-ball fixtures due to its smaller capacity.  

Construction work began recently on the facility near Preston, which will become a centre of excellence for women's cricket in the region, host men's, women's and age-group matches for both Lancashire and Thunder, and cater for community cricket. It is scheduled to be completed ahead of the 2025 season. 

"I hate coming here and seeing 1,000 people watching a live game, it doesn't feel right," Anson said. "I do have a hope that the Farington development can build something that creates a real atmosphere for the games when we've got small attendances. 2,000, 2,500 people can make it feel really special. 

"I went to York last season for the game between Yorkshire and Lancashire in the 50-over and the atmosphere was brilliant. They had a venue there that accommodated a couple of thousand people really well and created an atmosphere that was really special.  

"If we can create that at Farington and make it feel like a real cricket venue and a hub for members and fans, we can maybe start reviving the County Championship and play some of our games there. It does have a role to play in making the County Championship feel special again."