| 
Posts and words
Loading ...
allen stanford
The six billion dollar man
By Will last year, mid-May, 2 Comments »
BBC Panorama, a bit of an institution in Britain, turns its broad-and-rarely-conclusive gaze to Sir Allen Stanford tomorrow night at 20.30BST. It’ll doubtless be available on BBC Iplayer afterwards, which is of no use to those not in Britain, but…anyway. Just passing the info on.
2 Comments »They thought the tall Texan was perhaps a bit brash for their tastes, but solid and, perhaps most importantly, solvent.
In Panorama: The Six Billion Dollar Man, we find out that Sir Allen was not at all as he seemed.
More over, his story appears to be something of a metaphor for what has happened in the wider financial world in recent months – a lack of questions asked at the right time and then, suddenly, reality hits smack between the eyes like a full toss from a fast bowler.
Clarke’s 9000 fans
By Will last year, at the end of February, 7 Comments »
Apparently, Giles Clarke received 9000 emails of support after the fracas involving the ECB and Sir Allen Stanford. As Patrick Kidd asks, and as several colleagues also pointed out, if he had 9000 fans then how many people offered something rather less warming than “support”? Not sure. Clarke didn’t say.
An enraged Kidd at The Times was so gob-smacked at Clarke’s outrageous claims that he used three whole questions marks. “9,000???” he asked, spittle flying around his study.
I hope that Clarke is still a regular reader of this blog (you do realise that when I called you scruffy, Giles, it was a compliment? Just look at how scruffy I am). If he is, then he should be reassured that I am not for one second claiming that he is lying about how much support he has received or exaggerating just a smidgin.
But still, 9,000??? How do you know that they were all letters of support? Isn’t there a chance that the odd advert for Russian brides or prophylactics slipped through? Are you including ECB press releases in that tally? We can assume (I think) that the ECB backs you, but it’s a bit sneaky to tot them up in the pro-Clarke column.
The very fact Clarke felt moved to mention the magic 9000 figure says rather a lot about his state of mind, or his bulging Outlook, and there can be little doubt that he hasn’t looked over his shoulder in the past few days. But it’s remarkable how the ECB seems to have slipped quietly under the radar since quickly cutting ties with Stanford, as though that public show of severance would mask the greed which lured it to Stanford in the first place.
It has not. The ECB continues to maintain that is is the honest, innocent party in this maelstrom. Stanford could and did pay, Clarke insists, which seems to be the ECB’s utterly blinkered method of washing its hands of responsibility. The warning signs were there that Stanford might have a jack up his sleeve and, if they were blinded by his pearly white smile, then surely the hired helicopter landing at short extra cover at Lord’s would have woken them up?
That the ECB are still scrabbling around offering excuses probably tells us enough about how English cricket ever got involved with Stanford in the first place.
7 Comments »The sleazy affair is over
By Will last year, mid-February, 17 Comments »
They call it Stella vision, waking up the next morning next to a monstrosity with whom you’ve shared the most intimate and brief of relations. Your head’s banging, your mouth dry, and the urge to escape and pretend it never happened is almost overwhelming.
That might be roughly how Giles Clarke and other ECB board members are feeling right now, after the news that Sir Allen Stanford, Clarke’s prized jewel of his tenure, has been accused of “fraud of a shocking magnitude” by the Securities & Exchange Commission. No amount of ibuprofen is going to lessen or cure this embarrassment for the ECB. The sleazy affair is well and truly done and dusted.
All the signs were there, right from when he shocked the establishment by landing his helicopter at Lord’s, all the way to the accusations by the Venezuelan secret police that the CIA were paying his employees to spy. Now, we learn that Stanford could have been involved in up to £5.6billion of fraudulent activities. The Hollywood script is beginning to shape up nicely, and you can almost hear Clarke’s heartbeat thudding through his ribcage. His time with Majestic Wine ended acrimoniously, and Pet City – which he founded in the mid-1990s – was a loss-making venture, though his shares still earned him about £20m. Was the deal with Stanford done for cricket’s interest, the ECB’s, or Giles Clarke? We may never know, but questions will now be asked about Clarke’s position, and moreover why better background investigations were not taken place by the ECB. The questioning seemed to be something like this:
Who is Stanford? What is the Stanford Group? Can he further English and West Indian cricket by money alone? Do we care? Shall we see if his first cheque goes through and, if so, take the risk? No one offering that amount of money can be dodgy; he’ll be true to his word. He must be a good egg (and a very clever one too) if he’s made all that money. Let’s do it. Where do we sign, Sir Allen? I hear you have a place in Colombia, too! Wow. Sir Allen, don’t think me as rude, but that man with the sunglasses and serious expression on his face has been following you around all day. Oh, very impressive – private security! No, let me open the door. So, tell me – this place in Colombia…
Cricket isn’t used to this extravagance, this bare-faced gluttony which Stanford brought. In the end, it was all too good to be true.
In 2007 Clarke was asked whether there are any similarities between cricket and business. “They are both long-term games and can change incredibly swiftly with just a couple of events,” he said. “The key element is teamwork; both teams and companies which are dependent on one person have fundamental long-term flaws.”
Quite so, Giles.
17 Comments »Cricket the sideshow
By Alex Try 2 years ago, at the end of October, No Comments; be the first!
The democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama spent millions of dollars this week in airing a half-hour campaign advert on several prime-time US television networks. An orator in the finest classical traditional, he offers a compelling vision for his country. His pitch was moving, uplifting and polished in presentation.
This coming Saturday another commercial will air: this time for the billionaire financer Sir Allen Stanford. The comparison between the two is marked. While Stanford employs a camera to trail him throughout his set-piece cricket-match, Obama highlights the lives of the ordinary Americans whose lives he hopes to change. These two words “hope” and “change” are ubiquitous throughout the speeches Obama makes. The word most often seen at Stanford’s event is Stanford itself: the Stanford Stadium, the Stanford Super Series, the Stanford Superstars. He likes alliteration as much as the sound of his own name.
And this is the crucial point. This is not about the cricketing spectacle (if it was the pitch would be better) – this is about image and ego, compared to substance and character. Stanford is now the most well-known 205th richest man in America. Nobody has heard of John Catsimatidis, the next on the list. Money is his raison d’etre, and in buying the England cricket team he has bought the biggest advert the City of London has ever seen.
Here is one final thought: before the stadium was developed, with its pristine outfield and vernacular West Indian pavilion, the site was used as an old rubbish dump. Some metaphors come just too easily.
No Comments »Big Al’s blondes
By Will 2 years ago, at the end of October, 5 Comments »
You’ve no doubt heard by now that Big Al Stanford (henceforth known as Baz on this wee blog) was pictured with the wife of Matt Prior on his knee. Jigging up and down. Well, we don’t know what to make of it all. Daft plonker, or just a normal bloke who let his guard down and was having some harmless fun? Or, worse – a masterstroke of publicity?
The Daily Mail reported that one England player said he’d have punched Baz had it been his wife on the billionaire’s knee.
Ah well. Spiced up an effing dull tournament, didn’t it? Still, the feeling of pointlessness about the entire week has just shot up.
5 Comments »Stanford: transparent PR engine or philanthropist?
By Will 2 years ago, at the end of October, 10 Comments »
 |
|
So, the inaugural Stanford Super Series – note the abundance of capital letters – is here, and it got off to a tepid start last night. Trinidad & Tobago, the Stanford 20/20 domestic champions, couldn’t squeeze past the Stanford Superstars (effectively a West Indies XI), and everyone went home none the wiser. Apart from learning about the pitch, which had been rolled for 40 hours, and had a predictable lack of…well, anything really. For such a hyped week, the first match lacked that chutzpah which we had come to expect after all the build up.
Anyway. Long story short, I was chatting to someone covering the tournament out there today, who is a huge fan of Twenty20. It’s very much entertainment for him, not a replacement for anything, but he acknowledges that it might be the future. And that’s fine. He was appalled, however, at Stanford’s insistence of appearing on camera – timing it to perfection, and ensuring he was visible at all times. Plastic, meaningless cricket he called it. I’ve definitely been swept up by the excitement of watching players who have US$20 million at stake, but cricket really has sold a part of its soul, and we won’t know what impact this will have for some time.
I just don’t know what to make of it all. Mostly, I am in favour of what he has done to help kick-start a new phase in West Indies cricket, but only now is he realising just how difficult it is. The West Indies aren’t a nation: they’re a collection of nations, of politics, of religions and creeds and beliefs. The players are probably the most united of the lot: the board, or boards, are emphatically at odds with one another. Selection debates last weeks. “If you select my player, I’ll select yours” might sound like playground politics, but this happens rather too often for comfort in the West Indies. Not even big Al can influence inter-island political skirmishing.
It’s hard to fight the cynic in me which questions just how much Stanford cares about the game. After all, this is a guy who hasn’t even seen a Test match, and who could well be bored by five days of engrossing drip-fed theatre. This is a billionaire who’s spent over 26 years in the tax haven of Antigua, a country that I’m sure is blessed to have him as a citizen, but businessmen’s interests are money, money, money. Philanthropy by the rich is a bogus concept, like those benefactors who “donate” the odd million to political parties. They want, and get, something in return. The question is: what does Allen want out of all this, other than global publicity?
When Bill Gates began dishing out the dollars a decade ago, people were shocked that anyone could afford such extravagent charity. But this was a PR stunt as much as anything. Microsoft’s name had been dragged through the courts, or was on the verge of some horrendous lawsuits. Why not show their nicer, cuddly side instead?
Stanford is no Bill Gates in this respect, but cricket cannot afford to throw all its precious eggs into one man’s basket. The same goes for the Indian Premier League and any other off-shoots that spring. Wizened sages like Ian Bishop and Michael Holding resigned from their roles as Stanford ambassadors once they’d seen the set-up at close quarters. They may not be the last.
And yet, we’ll all be glued to the TV next Saturday, when England and Stanford Superstars go head-to-head. Who will cope with the pressure? Who won’t? And that’s where Stanford’s brilliance lies: it’s a masterstroke of publicity and we’ve all fallen for it utterly. The sport is at a vulnerable crossroads and needs the interest of people like Allen Stanford, but on our terms.
10 Comments »Twenty20 Finals Day
By Will 2 years ago, at the end of July, No Comments; be the first!
Even the ECB clerk who first pondered the idea of Twenty20 must be wondering what monster he has unearthed. As we approach the sixth Twenty20 Finals Day in England, the stakes are higher than ever; the amount of money vaguely ludicrous. And no one really knows what the bloody hell is going on.
What the bloody hell is for certain, of course, is the loot. There’s a weeny cheque for £42,000 for the winners of the Twenty Cup, but the real cash cow grazes in Texas: Allen Stanford, everyone’s favourite moustachioed billionaire, has offered the winners of this year’s tournament to challenge England ahead of the Stanford Sugardaddy Superstar Slogathon later this year. There is a reported £30,000 on offer for each of the winning XI should the county beat England.
In addition, of course, there’s the Champions League – that monstrous tournament featuring domestic Twenty20 winners from Australia, South Africa, England and India – though, as usual, there is some doubt as to whether this will take place. The winners of that particular cash whale is £2.5m. Kent and Durham, two of the semi-finalists for tomorrow, are ineligible because they have fielded players who have represented the nasty, evil Indian Cricket League, and Lalit Modi simply won’t accept anything but the purest of pure, as though the ICL has tainted their souls.
It’s a remarkable moment for cricket, this, but also equally uncertain. Announcements from counties, from the ECB – from Allen himself – are all last-minute. Negotiations are constantly ongoing and “in development”. Accusations are denied or refuted; amounts of money disputed or altered seemingly on a daily basis. There is an undercurrent of bubbling excitement fuelled by politics and uncertainty; driven by money. It’s amazing what a few noughts and pound-signs will do for the enthusiasm levels.
What is for certain, however, is four teams will do battle at The Rose Bowl – one of my least favourite grounds, I have to admit – tomorrow, and amid all the tension and pressure to win, it should be a cracking day for all: not least for the Mascot Race (I don’t know why I capitalised that) and David Lloyd’s infectious commentary. My money’s on Durham to beat Essex in the final, but don’t write Middlesex off – the greatest county in the land – especially with Dawid Malan in the side.
Anyway. Keep your eye on Cricinfo, and leave your thoughts on the madness in the comments below.
No Comments »Twenty20: England v New Zealand, Old Trafford
By Will 2 years ago, mid-June, 2 Comments »
The new dawn is upon us, whether we like it or not. England take on New Zealand at Old Trafford tonight and, to all intents and purposes, will have one eye firmly fixed on the lure of Allen Stanford’s millions.
I’ll be on a train while it’s all going on, but in the meantime, be sure to check out our commentary and leave your thoughts in the comments below. Welcome to the new, bonkers world.
2 Comments »Stanford unveils US$100m deal with England and West Indies
By Will 2 years ago, mid-June, 11 Comments »
Good god. Did we ever expect this sort of money to be part of cricket? After much debate, Stanford’s expansion from the Caribbean has been confirmed, and England will face an All Stars XI from the West Indies on November 1. The winner will take home $20m:
There were concerns with the winner-takes-all format proposed by Stanford but those seem to have been resolved. A deal will mean that if England win, each of the XI will receive US$1 million, the rest of the squad share US$1 million, and the management team splits another US$1 million. The remaining US$7 million will be shared between the ECB and the West Indies Cricket Board, regardless of the outcome of the match itself.
All of which puts yet more emphasis on this year’s domestic Twenty20 Cup; not only could a good performance loft a player to India for the Champions League, but a life-changing sum of money in the Caribbean a few weeks later. This is monstrous. Bonkers, but monstrous.
11 Comments »Stanford close to luring ECB
By Will 2 years ago, at the end of April, 59 Comments »
Allen Stanford and Lalit Modi. Two entirely different characters, both from opposite ends of the world – geographically and, arguably, morally – but both with a shared love of money and cricket. Why do I worry less about the Wild West cowboy, and more about Modi’s modus operandi?
Perhaps it’s because he’s American and has no historical connection to a cricket board. Maybe it’s because he appears to have no dirty agenda to the politics of the sport: he’s seemingly happy to pile money into the flayling West Indies cricket, and anyone else who wants to join in the fun is more than welcome. This sounds naive – of course, billionaires crave and adore money: it is their driving force – but his come-follow-me attitude is refreshing and progressive, which cannot be said of Modi. Modi’s business is power and politics; the IPL has already made him millions, but it is a vehicule to global dominance. We’ve seen this season how the ECB have been tied up in knots banning (and subsequently unbanning) various players who represented the Indian Cricket League – the antichrist to the sanctioned IPL – which demonstrates just how much power the BCCI wields.
Anyway, I digress. I like Mr Stanford and am quite excited by what he could do to counter Modi’s unquenchable thirst for dominance. He has met with the ECB – significantly, the president of the West Indies Cricket Board, Dr Julian Hunte, was also present – to finalise plans for an England v West Indies All Stars XI later this year (and possibly running over five years). The matches themselves aren’t too significant, but it could signal the start of a business relationship which expands far beyond any of our imaginings. Stanford’s 20/20 in the Caribbean was a rollicking success – some say he should be in charge of ICC’s World Cups – so it’ll be fascinating to see what he and England come up with.
59 Comments »English Premier League gathers momentum
By Will 2 years ago, mid-April, 10 Comments »
The news that Allen Stanford, the Wild West’s Lalit Modi, is to meet the ECB next week offers a delicious opportunity to ponder what the England board has up its sleeve. And still the ECB continue to maintain, with absolutely no conviction, that they “don’t want a knee-jerk reaction to the IPL”. That is exactly what they want, and arguably need. There’s a sense the ECB are spitting nails that another country – god forbid India! – have stolen their Twenty20 and created a monster from it. They want that monster, their beast, back.
So they’re pondering the English Premier League (EPL), a smaller sibling India’s giant tournament, to take advantage of England’s season to attract international stars. It’ll probably take place in June and July next year as no other country has any international commitments to conflict. And with Stanford potentially coming on board – it’s absolutely unclear what, if any, the Texan’s role might be – the prospect of millions of dollars come into the equation.
Stanford’s 20/20, the Caribbean tournament which he piled millions of his own money into, has been a runaway success with cricket at its core. There are even some who wish Stanford would take charge of ICC’s World Cup every four years; he does things loud, in a very American way, but rather like Mr Getty has a fondness for cricket and wants to keep the sport’s traditions at the centre. Also like Getty and Modi, he knows a good deal when he spots one.
In the IPL, team names have been singularly uninspiring. The Mumbai Indians, the Deccan Chargers, the Bangalore Royal Challengers. Boring. What do you make of England’s plans, and what teams might be created?
10 Comments »