Emirates Old Trafford hosts inaugural India-North England Opportunity Summit
Emirates Old Trafford - the home of Lancashire Cricket and Manchester Super Giants – proudly hosted the inaugural India–North England Opportunity Summit in Manchester on Friday (20 March).
The Summit showcased the growing importance of North England in advancing India–UK relations and marked the first anniversary of the Consulate General of India in Manchester.
Taking place in The Point at Emirates Old Trafford, The Summit brought together leading voices from government, industry, academia, and culture to reflect on the strong foundations of the partnership and explore emerging areas. The Point - with a maximum capacity of 1,000 guests – is Emirates Old Trafford’s largest suite and unique, purpose-built event space. With panoramic views of the outfield, The Point is the perfect host for large-scale conferences such as the India-North England Opportunity Summit. The venue is complete with an on-site 250-bed room Hilton Garden Inn Hotel.
In addition to networking opportunities, The Summit featured various addresses and panel chats including from Vishakha Yaduvanshi (Consul General of India, Manchester), The Rt Hon Jonathan Reynolds (Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury and architect of the India-UK free trade agreement) alongside H.E. Vikram K Doraiswami (High Commissioner of India to the UK), The Rt Hon Angela Rayner (Member of Parliament for Ashton-Under-Lyne) and by Cllr Bev Craig OBE (Leader of Manchester City Council).
The Summit was also attended by representatives from: The Manchester India Partnership, Confederation of Indian Industry, Trident Group, Christy, Aeroservices, JMW, ICICI Bank, University of York, Tata Consultancy Services and Go Live.
Daniel Gidney Chief Executive at Lancashire Cricket was joined on a panel by Reuben Singh (CEO AllDayPA and Isher Capital) to spotlight inspiring stories from sports and business.
Lancashire Cricket has a long affiliation with India which started when former Indian international wicketkeeper Farokh Engineer played at the Club from 1968-1976. Engineer has since been followed by several more India internationals including Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman and most recently Harmanpreet Kaur and Venkatesh Iyer. Current India internationals Smriti Mandhana and Richa Ghosh will also represent Manchester Super Giants women in The Hundred this summer.
The Club then strengthened ties with India last year when agreeing a new partnership with the RP Sanjiv Goenka Group (RPSG). RPSG Group, one of India’s fastest growing conglomerates and owners of Lucknow Super Giants in the Indian Premier League, acquired a 70% stake in The Hundred franchise based at Emirates Old Trafford, now known as Manchester Super Giants, with Lancashire Cricket owning the other 30%. The transaction represented a deal of over £100million in value, directly into Manchester.
Speaking at the event, Lancashire Cricket Chief Executive Daniel Gidney said: “We were honoured and proud to play host to the inaugural India-North England Opportunity Summit and welcome many distinguished guests to Emirates Old Trafford on Friday.
“Last year the launch of The Consulate marked a significant step in relations between Greater Manchester and India and has strengthened bilateral trade, business relations and serving the large Indian community in Manchester and the North West.
“We were also delighted to finalise a deal with Kolkata-based RPSG Group after they were successful in last year’s auction for the Emirates Old Trafford-based franchise in The Hundred. This represented a significant investment from an Indian organisation into a leading Manchester-based sports team, and one which we – alongside the RPSG Group – are looking forward to growing together.
“This summer, we are looking forward to welcoming India Men back to Manchester for an IT20 against England in July – with Emirates Old Trafford already sold out – while we are also incredibly excited to welcome India Women for two ICC Women’s T20 World Cup matches against South Africa and Bangladesh in June.”
Vishakha Yaduvanshi, Consulate General of India, Manchester, also commented: “The Consulate General of India is honoured to host India-North England Opportunity Summit at the iconic Emirates Old Trafford Cricket stadium. Lancashire County Cricket Club (LCCC) has consistently extended its support to the Consulate in advancing our efforts to strengthen India’s ties with the North of England, and Manchester in particular. LCCC has been instrumental in the milestones achieved in this relationship - from the inaugural ceremony of the CGI, to hosting the reception for Women’s Cricket champions, and now this summit. We are deeply appreciative of this partnership.
“I would like to thank Daniel (Gidney) for his valuable contributions in highlighting the strong sports linkages between India and Manchester. His presentation on India-Manchester sports collaboration not only underlined the existing strengths but the opportunities and scope for future cooperation. We are particularly encouraged to note that inward investment from India is not only helping grow the sports but also bolstering the ties between India and Manchester.
“I am confident that this Summit will build on this momentum and further advance our shared endeavour of deepening connections.”
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