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The Hundred: What has the impact of new ownership been on the tournament?

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Manchester Super Giants (MSG) rebranded from the Originals, also changing their team logo and colours, after RPSG group – led by Indian billionaire Sanjiv Goenka – bought a 70% stake in the franchise, with Lancashire having 30% ownership.

Goenka’s Indian Premier League (IPL) side Lucknow Super Giants have yet to reach that competition’s final since being founded in 2022, but his Hundred investment has resulted in immediate success as Jos Buttler’s side sealed the Manchester franchise’s first title for either men or women.

Lancashire chief executive Daniel Gidney, also on the board of MSG, says there’s no choice but to be bold in a rebrand.

“If you’re trying to launch a new brand in a new market, in the UK particularly, in a city that is dominated by football, you’ve got to go big and loud,” Gidney told BBC Sport.

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One daring ‘brand activation’ resulted in almost 30,000 free shirts being given to Super Giants fans.

“To give everybody a free jersey who bought a ticket is extraordinarily different,” said Gidney.

“You can’t normally do it because a kit manufacturer will go, ‘No, no, no. I’ve got to sell that kit for £60-80.’

“You never get anything for free. It’s had a massive impact, much more than I thought.”

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The decision was made this first year to forego a potentially lower kit deal for the opportunity to build the MSG brand, get fans in the team colours, and then strike a more lucrative supplier deal in years to come.

But how does that benefit Lancashire more broadly? The county’s merchandise continues to be sold at Old Trafford on matchdays, while at the moment you won’t find MSG products in the club shop.

Gidney says Lancashire were able to “retain effectively 50% merchandise arrangements” with MSG, who they can use as a “bit of a pilot” – possibly bringing some of what they learn into the T20 Blast competition.

The franchise will now hope to have acquired new fans and take momentum from their first on-field triumph, while they also pocket £275,000 in prize money.

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They were dealt the blow of losing captain Aiden Markram halfway through the group stage as he returned to South Africa for personal reasons, but Buttler seamlessly stepped up, while the appointment of Tom Moody as their director was another savvy decision.

Former Australia player Moody was at the helm for Oval Invincibles’ previous dominance in the men’s Hundred, with three consecutive titles. He will hope for further success at Old Trafford alongside compatriot Justin Langer, hired as coach from this season, the same role he has at Lucknow.

There are positives for their women’s side too, who just missed out on a knockout spot, but look likely to be in a good place if they can keep legendary former Australia captain Meg Lanning in charge.

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Can Roman Reigns deny Solo Sikoa in The Bloodline for one big reason? Exploring the possibility

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Roman Reigns is set to return on the Aug. 17 episode of WWE RAW after missing last week’s show, which featured major developments in the Bloodline saga. Jey Uso faced Solo Sikoa in a high-stakes impromptu match, with the stipulation that if The Yeet Man wins, The Street Champion would be forced to join the family. On the other hand, a Sikoa win would make him a free man from the Bloodline.

Thanks to Jimmy Uso’s interference, Jey Uso won the bout. As a result, this week, Solo Sikoa will be forced to rejoin The Bloodline in the presence of The OTC.

However, Roman could deny Solo Sikoa’s entry into The Bloodline.

The Tribal Chief could go off on Jey Uso for making his own rules and not bothering to ask him once before making such a big decision, which could have cost them if he had lost.

The OTC could also call out The Yeet Man and Big Jim for cheating to win, something Reigns has been avoiding himself.

However, The Usos breaking the rule could put them at odds with the Tribal Chief, who follows an entirely different philosophy. Therefore, Roman Reigns could deny Sikoa entry into the group and let him go for a while, creating a gripping segment, planting seeds of tension within the Bloodline, and potentially building toward another civil war.

Meanwhile, this would also help Solo Sikoa continue to grow as a babyface superstar on Monday Night RAW.

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That said, the angle proposed above is speculative, and nothing has been officially confirmed yet.

Former WWE United States Champion takes shots at Roman Reigns ahead of RAW

The Original Tribal Chief is on a dominant run as the World Heavyweight Champion and has already defended his strap thrice.

AAA General Manager Rey Mysterio recently announced that Roman Reigns will defend his strap on the Sept. 14 edition of WWE RAW in Mexico City. The winner of the cross-brand Luchador tournament, featuring luchadores from RAW, SmackDown, AAA, and NXT, will earn a title shot.

Penta is one of those stars; he already punched his ticket to the tournament’s semi-finals and is just two steps away from a title match. The former United States Champion appeared on this week’s AAA episode and issued a chilling warning to Roman Reigns, claiming he would win the tournament.

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“You have never faced a wrestler like Penta, you’ve never been in front of a man like Penta, a man who has fought for everything, even his life, to gain everything I’ve gained in my career. Roman, I’ve never need a family or a faction or a group to accomplish my objectives. Penta has fought for himself and for all his people, that is Penta. I respect you as a wrestler, but when I win this tournament, I’m going straight to Mexico City, I’m gonna see you face to face and show you who is Penta,” he said. (Translated from Spanish) (30:30 onwards)

With Sunday Night’s Main Event and 2026 Money in the Bank on the way, it will be interesting to see what plans Triple H and the WWE creative crew have in store for Roman Reigns and his Bloodline in the coming weeks.