This Is Moneyball

This summer sees the cricket World Cup in England and Wales, alongside women's football in France and rugby in Japan. Broadcaster Georgie Frost and assistant editor Lee Boyce ask: does the hype of major events really impact grassroots participation? We zero in on one of these…and ask whether we can, at last say that with all the media hype, the increased sponsorship and prize money, that the women's game has finally arrived?  We are joined by Beth Towle, club chair of South London Laces to tackle that very question. Elsewhere, how much for the winners and losers in Baku and Madrid and the Premier League sits comfortably atop the European finance table but for how long… And once and for all: what are parachute payments and are they good for the game? We also take a peek at Deloitte's latest annual football review with Tim Bridge and speak to Surrey cricket chief executive Richard Gould about the current world cup.