If axed, players free to do deals
CRICKET PAY WAR
CRICKET’S major sponsors went to ground yesterday as the escalating pay war opened the door for their rivals to access Australia’s best players.
Rather than appearing in Ashes ads for Qantas and XXXX, Test stars Steve Smith and David Warner could potentially deal with other airlines and beer makers as their offfield income streams became part of the impasse.
The Australian Cricketers Association said it would take control of players’ intellectual property rights — their name, voice, signature, trademarks, images, likeness and even performance — from July 1 should a new deal not be signed.
It is believed the players were being told as early as March a new pay deal by June 30 was unlikely and they would be able to sign commercial deals their national contracts would never allow.
Several sponsors contacted by News Corp Australia declined to comment, but ACA boss Alistair Nicholson said questions had been coming from broadcasters and commercial partners concerned about the lack of movement in negotiations.
Nicholson said the ACA created a company called The Cricketers Brand for anyone who wanted access to players who would be out of contract on July 1 and therefore not obligated to CA sponsors for promotions, appearances and even interviews.
“We’ve asked to mediate, we have the top players in the world coming out of contract, we are getting inquiries from broadcasters and sponsors around what happens,” he said.
“It was important to say there is a vehicle here if you want to come and talk to the ACA about accessing players.
“It’s an important step to making sure if there is some transition and some management needed, that there is some structure to do that.”
The new company could also help provide an income stream for the players’ union, with CA set to pull an annual funding grant of $4 million.
CA yesterday maintained it was willing to go back to the negotiating table as soon as the ACA removed “preconditions” about keeping the 20-year-old revenue sharing model.