How Will BCCI And Its Members Align Themselves With The National Sports Governance Bill

The National Sports Governance Bill (NSGB) 2025 has not yet set the cat among the pigeons, but it will, once the supreme National Sports Board (NSB) is put in place by the Central government. Seasoned sports administrators fear that the NSB can play hell with the majority of the national sports federations and individuals. Former Olympian and seasoned administrator (Athletics) Adille Sumariwalla though feels that the age (up to 75) and tenure (three terms of four years each for the top three office bearers (president, secretary and treasurer) with a four-year cooling off after 12 years is a step in the right direction as this will help Indians get elected to World bodies and campaign for international events. Time will tell how the NSB functions, but cricket (BCCI) and its members — governed by the Supreme Court-endorsed Constitution as recommended by Justice Lodha — will need clarity on the amendments its AGM can consider. The BCCI and its members’ Apex Council is set at nine, with two nominees from the ICA and one from the CGI. The NSGB has capped a national federation’s Executive Committee to 15 — with a minimum of four women representatives, and this is where the first of teething problems can start because of the structure of the BCCI, its member units and how its Apex Council is elected. Newbie cricket administrators also point to the eligibility criteria to contest for the top three posts at the national and member units. The present bye-laws allow for a first-generation administrator to contest for the office bearers post, the NSGB appears to block it. A lot of clarity is needed for the BCCI and its member units and other federations, too.