Sussex chair Ed Warner proposes August T10 triangular for counties outside the Hundred

Ed Warner, the new chair of Sussex, proposed on 8 August 2026 a T10 triangular competition to be staged during August alongside the One-Day Cup for counties not hosting Hundred fixtures. He presented the idea as a means to generate revenue and to provide playing opportunities for squad members who do not feature in the Hundred.

Smaller counties have complained about limited fixtures during the height of the summer, with Sussex having just four days’ play at home during this year’s Hundred, which began on 21 July and will conclude with the final at Lord’s on 16 August. Sussex comes under the Southern Brave umbrella but the franchise’s home matches are played at Hampshire’s Utilita Bowl. Warner raised his proposal following the publication of a governance review at Sussex and amid the club’s current disciplinary and financial scrutiny by the ECB.

Warner criticised the ECB’s approach to the Hundred and set out the triangular concept in direct terms, saying: "The ECB has probably been far too protective of the Hundred to get the money in," and "But now they need to be a little more wide-ranging in their thinking about the cricket calendar." He added: "I’ll be lobbying to open up the cricketing calendar with events that don’t compete directly with the Hundred, but are money-generating opportunities for us, and a chance for our players to play the game." Warner specifically suggested a regional T10 with Kent and Essex and outlined a family-oriented model in his words: "Why couldn’t you have a T10 triangular competition with Kent and Essex, for example? Make it very kid-friendly, make it a day at the seaside, then go and play at Canterbury, then go and play in Chelmsford. Those are the sorts of things that I don’t think competes with the Hundred, but does compete with other entertainments in the school holidays in our local area."

Several Sussex players are taking part in this year’s Hundred: James Coles was signed by London Spirit and Jofra Archer was retained by Southern Brave. Coles was the most expensive player at the competition’s March auction, at £390,000, and that auction was the tournament’s first.

Warner’s remarks came as Sussex deal with the findings of an external review by consultancy Campbell Tickell, which concluded the club’s financial difficulties stemmed from poor management and a lack of commercial and governance expertise. The club has been placed in special measures by the ECB for breaching financial sustainability regulations, a situation revealed in January, and Sussex were docked 12 points in the County Championship the following month.

Warner, a former chair of UK Athletics who was appointed last month to address those failings, said the club has begun cost-cutting measures. He confirmed the introduction of efficiency savings and reductions to the player budget, and said the club is on course to meet the ECB’s initial target. When asked about the wider structure of English cricket he said: "Are we a victim of the structure of English cricket?" and answered: "Yes, but we can’t afford to go around feeling like victims. We have to work out smart ways to spend the money that we’ve got to be competitive, and to be in a position to beat counties that have got Test grounds and Hundred franchises. "We’re not going to change the face of English cricket ourselves overnight. What we have to do is make this place financially secure, commercially successful and from a cricketing perspective, as exciting as we can."

Warner said he will lobby to open up the cricket calendar with events that do not directly compete with the Hundred, and Sussex must meet specific financial targets to avoid further sanctions: reduce last year’s £1.3m losses to £1m by October and break even 12 months later, with additional points deductions to follow if those conditions are not met.