The International Cricket Council (ICC) has confirmed Geoff Allardice as their permanent CEO after more than eight months in the role on an interim basis.
Geoff Allardice, who served as ICC’s General Manager for eight years, took over from Manu Sawhney in March after the latter was suspended due to the findings of a cultural review.
ICC’s Chairman Greg Barclay, in an official statement, said that Geoff Allardice showed tremendous leadership during the ‘extremely challenging’ period and successfully delivered the ICC T20 World Cup 2021.
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“I am delighted that Geoff has agreed to take the role of ICC CEO permanently. He has shown tremendous leadership during an extremely challenging period culminating in the successful delivery of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021,” Greg Barclay said.
Barclay said that with the kind of knowledge Geoff has of the global cricket landscape and its stakeholders, he’s the right person for the post of CEO for the next decade.
"Geoff has unrivaled knowledge of the global cricket landscape and its stakeholders and has consistently demonstrated he is the right person to work in partnership with our Members to shape the sport for the next decade as we embark on delivering a new strategy and our next commercial rights cycle," he said.
Speaking on his permanent appointment as ICC CEO, Geoff Allardice thanked the ICC Board for the opportunity. He said that his focus will be on doing the right things for the sport and delivering long-term success.
He further thanked ICC’s staff for their commitment and support over the last eight months.
“It's a great privilege to be appointed as the CEO of the ICC and I would like to thank Greg and the ICC Board for the opportunity to lead the sport as we enter an exciting new phase of growth. My continued focus will be on doing the right thing for our sport and working closely with Members to deliver long-term success and sustainability.
“I would also like to thank the ICC staff for their commitment and support over the last eight months and I'm looking forward to continuing to serve cricket with such a talented team," he said.
Notably, Geoff Allardice also served as the General Manager at Cricket Australia.
(ANI inputs)