The International Cricket Council (ICC), the sport's global governing body, has appointed Sanjog Gupta as its new chief executive (CEO).
Gupta, who replaces New Zealand's Geoff Allardice in that position, is well-known within the highest cricket administration circles – he joins from the Indian broadcast heavyweight JioStar, where he has been CEO of sports and live experiences since that combined entity was launched last November.
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In total, he has been at Star India (which then turned into JioStar through the merger of Disney Star and Viacom18) since 2010.
Gupta takes up his new role today, becoming the seventh CEO of the cricket body.
The ICC launched the recruitment process to find Allardice's replacement in March, and has said that, aside from Gupta, short-listed candidates include the likes of ICC deputy chair Imran Khwaja, England and Wales Cricket Board chair Richard Thompson, and Board of Control for Cricket in India honorary secretary Devajit Saikia. In total, the process attracted over 2,500 applicants.
The ICC has now confirmed that its nominations committee unanimously recommended Gupta after a “rigorous” selection process.
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By GlobalDataCricket's governing body has hailed its new CEO's "proven expertise in building successful consumer franchises."
Gupta, meanwhile, said: “These are exciting times for the sport as marquee events grow in stature, commercial avenues widen, and opportunities such as the women’s game scale in popularity. Cricket’s inclusion in the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games and the rapid acceleration of technology deployment/adoption could act as force-multipliers for the cricket movement around the world.
“I look forward to contributing to the next phase of cricket’s evolution, expanding its global footprint, enhancing the fan experience, and working closely with ICC member boards to build on our strong foundations.”
Gupta originally became head of sports at Disney & Star India in 2020, in which role he was heavily involved in the various cricket media rights deals conducted by the major Indian broadcast group.
JioStar holds rights in India to all major ICC events and tournaments through 2027, for example, through a tie-up struck (by Star) three years ago, and is one of the ICC's foremost media partners.
Jay Shah, chair of the ICC – who took up his role last December – added: “Our goal is to move beyond traditional boundaries and establish cricket as a regular sport in the Olympics, growing its expanse across the world and deepening its roots in its core markets.
“We considered several exceptional candidates for this position, but the nominations committee unanimously recommended Sanjog.”
Allardice stepped down earlier this year, having been the ICC's CEO since March 2021 – initially on a temporary basis, and then as full-time incumbent from November of that year.
His background before taking the job was in cricket administration, as opposed to Gupta's as a senior sports media executive.
The next major ICC tournament will be the 2025 Women's World Cup one-day international tournament, to be held in India and Sri Lanka from September 30 to November 2.
