thecricketer

Name

thecricketer

Legal name

Test Match Extra.com Ltd

Website

https://thecricketer.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1921

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Cricketer is a UK-based multi-platform cricket media company operating the world's oldest cricket magazine (founded 1921). It serves cricket enthusiasts via a print magazine, thecricketer.com digital platform, mobile app, Schools Guide, and merchandise shop, monetized through subscriptions, advertising, and e-commerce.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cricket Media and Sports Journalism

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120), Book Retailers and News Dealers (459210)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Digital Magazine & Newspaper Subscription Platforms (Paywalls, Membership) (MPAJAMAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Digital Newsstand & Aggregation Platforms (Magazine/News Apps, Bundles) (MPAJAKAE)

Keywords

• Cricket journalism
• Cricket magazine publishing
• Sports news media
• Digital news subscriptions
• Cricket merchandise retail

Headquarters

HQ city

York

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Digital Subscriptions: Monthly recurring digital subscriptions at £3.99/month providing unlimited access to online content including breaking news, insight, interviews, analysis and in-depth coverage of cricket
2. Print Magazine Subscriptions: Annual print magazine subscription at £52.49 for 12 issues, sold separately from digital access
3. Digital Advertising: Advertising revenue from digital media including display ads, sponsored content and partnership banners on thecricketer.com with 2,000,000+ digital audience
4. Print Advertising: Print media pack available for advertisers wanting to reach the magazine's readership
5. Merchandise and Products: E-commerce sales through shop.thecricketer.com including gifts, books, binders, t-shirts and gear, wine, and cricket merchandise
6. Schools Guide: Annual Schools Guide publication sold separately at £8.50, featuring rankings of best UK schools for cricket

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Cricketer is a multi-platform cricket media company that publishes the world's oldest cricket magazine (founded 1921), operates thecricketer.com digital news and analysis platform, runs iOS and Android mobile apps delivering live scores and news, and sells branded merchandise, cricket books, and the annual Schools Guide through shop.thecricketer.com. Subscription products include monthly digital access at £3.99/month (with £1 first-month trial) and an annual print subscription at £52.49 for 12 issues.

Product overview

The Cricketer operates as a multi-platform cricket media company offering a portfolio of products across print, digital, and e-commerce channels. The core offerings include The Cricketer Magazine (print), The Cricketer Digital (thecricketer.com website), and The Cricketer App (mobile application), supported by subscription services for both digital (£3.99/month) and print (£52.49/year) access. The product portfolio also includes The Cricketer Schools Guide (annual publication), The Cricketer Shop (e-commerce platform selling books, merchandise, gifts, and memorabilia), and related cricket-themed products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Cricketer Magazine The flagship monthly print publication of The Cricketer, billed as the world's oldest and best-selling cricket magazine, delivering award-winning news, features, interviews and analysis covering cricket at every level from grassroots village games to international fixtures.
• The Cricketer Digital (thecricketer.com) The online digital platform of The Cricketer, offering breaking news, interviews, opinion, live scores, fixtures, results, tables, averages and in-depth cricket coverage across domestic and international cricket.
• The Cricketer App Mobile application providing a regularly updated news feed, live scores centre, fixtures and results listings, plus access to analysis, features, interviews, columns and exclusive news from The Cricketer on iOS and Android devices.
• The Cricketer Schools Guide Annual comprehensive guide ranking the top 100 senior schools, top 50 prep/junior schools, top 20 all-girls schools and top 25 state schools in the UK for cricket, judged against criteria including curriculum commitment, facilities, coaching and outreach programmes.
• The Cricketer Shop Online retail platform at shop.thecricketer.com selling cricket merchandise including books, t-shirts and gear, gifts, binders, wine, memorabilia and collectibles related to cricket.
• Digital Subscription Recurring monthly subscription at £3.99/month (with £1 first-month trial for new subscribers) providing unlimited access to The Cricketer's online content including exclusive breaking news, insight, interviews, analysis and in-depth coverage of English and global cricket.
• Print Subscription Annual print subscription delivering 12 issues of The Cricketer Magazine per year for £52.49, providing physical magazine delivery to subscribers independent of digital access.
• Cricket Books Collection of cricket-themed books including autobiographies, history books, tour guides and The Cricketer's own publications such as The Cricketer Anthology of the Ashes, sold via the brand's shop.
• Cricket Gifts and Merchandise Range of cricket-themed gift items including personalized products, memorabilia, homeware and accessories sold via shop.thecricketer.com.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2,000,000+ digital audience reach
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Oak SoftwarecoreTechnology or Integration · 12 May 2021The Cricketer Publishing Ltd acquired Oak Software, a subscription management platform, as its current owners sought to step back from daily operations. The purchase was intended to develop the software further and benefit other publishers, creating a proprietary subscription management capability.
• Durant SportsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDurant Sports, one of the country's leading suppliers of cricket ground equipment, sponsors The Cricketer Schools Guide annually. Managing director Cristian Durant stated support for The Cricketer's ongoing coverage of school cricket showcasing coaches and staff contributions to grassroots cricket.
• Kia Motors UKminorGTM or Marketing PartnerKia UK advertising partnership featuring EV2 and EV5 vehicle promotions on The Cricketer website, including banner advertisements and direct links to Kia website. Partnership marked with Q3 2026 campaign branding at Kia Oval.
• Big Ant Studios (Cricket 26)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerCricket 26 by Big Ant Studios is the official game of the Australia v England Ashes series, featuring on The Cricketer's website. The partnership provides advertising revenue and cricket gaming content for readers.
• Durant CricketminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDurant Cricket, leading supplier of cricket ground equipment, supported The Cricketer Schools Guide 2024. Managing director Cristian Durant commented on supporting The Cricketer's coverage of schools cricket.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Wisden Cricketers' Almanack: Wisden publishes the iconic annual almanack and digital cricket content, directly competing with The Cricketer in English-language cricket journalism and reference publishing.
• ESPNcricinfo: ESPNcricinfo is the largest global cricket news and live scores destination, competing head-on with thecricketer.com for cricket fans, advertisers, and editorial talent.
• Cricbuzz: Cricbuzz is a leading cricket scores, news, and video app competing with The Cricketer app for cricket fan attention and mobile ad inventory.
• The Athletic: The Athletic operates a subscription-first sports journalism model across multiple sports, comparable to The Cricketer's digital subscription strategy, though at much greater scale and breadth.

Broad incumbents

• BBC Sport (Cricket): BBC Sport provides free, authoritative cricket coverage in the UK, competing with The Cricketer for audience attention and squeezing paid subscription willingness for casual fans.
• Sky Sports Cricket: Sky Sports is the dominant UK cricket broadcaster with extensive free digital cricket coverage, competing for advertising dollars and audience against The Cricketer.
• The Guardian Sport: The Guardian provides free cricket journalism from major outlets competing for the same English cricket reader and a portion of the advertising market The Cricketer targets.

Emerging players

• Sportico: Sportico is a subscription-based niche sports business media outlet, comparable to The Cricketer's premium subscription model though focused on sports business rather than a single sport.
• Substack: Substack is a subscription publishing platform enabling individual cricket writers and small publications to monetise audiences, partially competing with The Cricketer for paid cricket subscribers.

Others

• Digital Media Solutions (publishing platform providers): Subscription and digital publishing platform providers like Publishing Partners are comparable as infrastructure peers given The Cricketer's expansion of the Oak Software subscription management platform for other publishers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TheCricketerMag
• Facebookfacebook.com/thecricketermag
• Instagraminstagram.com/thecricketer

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about thecricketer