The ICC must renegotiate: Tim May

The International Cricket Council has advised all national cricket boards that it will not change the ambush marketing protection given to the ICC's commercial sponsors.

Former Australian Test cricketer Tim May, chief executive of the Australian Cricketers' Association and joint CEO of the Federation of International Cricketers' Associations, discusses the repercussions of the controversial move.

The nature of the negotiations with the International Cricket Council concerned pre-existing contracts that some players may have with companies that conflict with the ICC's major sponsors.

In short, the terms being offered to players for the Champions Trophy and the World Cup will not allow them to honour their obligations to their personal sponsors (where such sponsors conflict with the ICC's own) for the duration of any ICC tournament and 30 days before and after it.

This will place players in a position where, to participate in such a tournament, they will have to breach their existing sponsorship agreements. The players will most likely then have their existing contracts terminated and face possible legal action from such sponsors.

FICA supports the protection of ICC major sponsors. However, where players have pre-existing obligations, one cannot just ignore them. Any protection of major sponsors must be subject to the pre-existing obligations of players.

Any attempts by the ICC and the various cricket boards to induce players to breach their existing contracts are unlawful.

FICA's position to the ICC is to acknowledge the players' legal rights and amend the player agreements for the ICC tournaments accordingly.

The ICC, which has already sold these rights, needs to go back to the Global Cricket Corporation, which holds the television rights, and re-negotiate.

The GCC, not surprisingly having already bought these rights, is not keen to have them diluted.

Therein lies the problem.

It is a very difficult situation. Sponsors have paid prices based upon the protection detailed by the ICC, but such protection is unlawful where players have pre-existing obligations.

The ball is now in the ICC's court and we await a proposal from them to address this major issue that threatens the participation of a number of the world's leading players in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy and the 2003 World Cup.

As told to Faisal Shariff

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