2025 season fixtures show where the priorities lie for each county

“Discrimination is both overt and baked into the structures and processes within cricket.”

“Our evidence shows that women continue to be treated as subordinate to men within, and at all levels of, cricket.”

“There are significant levels of inequity in the availability of kit and in the number of grounds and facilities for women and girls.”

(ICEC report 2023)

These are all findings of the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket, which was published in June 2023. The fixture list for 2025 seems to show that change in cricket is as glacial as an April fixture in Chester-le-Street.

Looking on the bright side – Essex are champions of equity

The first thing to point out is that Essex are to be congratulated. All their men’s and women’s fixtures are being played at Chelmsford. They are closely followed by Durham, whose women have one venue “to be confirmed”, but all other fixtures are at Chester-le-Street. Both these counties, it seems to me, are demonstrating equity in both actions and words. In all their communications about their tier one women’s team, they demonstrate vision and ambition. They seem genuinely pleased to have fought for and gained tier one status.

Moving in the right direction

Somerset have already shown themselves to be innovators in the women’s game – their women’s cricket “life membership” offer for over 55s for £500 is a wonderful incentive to us all to live a long life, if only in order to get better value for money (I’ll be eligible in 2026 and am seriously tempted!) All but three of the 14 women’s fixtures are at Taunton. They are yet to confirm where these fixtures will happen, but one suspects either Taunton Vale or Bath may be considered. Likewise, Warwickshire / The Bears are hosting 11 of their 14 fixtures at Edgbaston. The other three are at the Portland Road ground, only three miles from Edgbaston. This ground needs further development, but could become a really good smaller venue with slightly enhanced facilities.

Could do better

It seems a bit of a surprise to put Lancashire in the “could do better” category. Over the last few years, they have been champions of the women’s game, with dedicated changing facilities, fantastic media coverage and great communications. Of course, when a venue is used for international cricket, particularly test matches, that does further restrict its usage. But in 2025 this means that only one Lancashire men’s county championship game will be held elsewhere (so 4 days out of 35 days of cricket in the two main competitions (6% of cricket time), whilst five women’s games are affected of their 14 fixtures (36% of cricket time), so women’s cricket is being disproportionately affected. Southport and Blackpool are good and welcoming out-grounds with a history of hosting women’s cricket. Sedbergh is a bit of an outpost and difficult to access. On the positive side, Lancashire will have their new ground at Farington, near Preston, open for the 2026 season, which includes a centre of excellence and top training facilities for the women’s team.

Also in the “could do better” category are Hampshire. Again, a county with a rich history in the women’s game. They have their own honours board for women’s achievement, regularly host and sell out women’s international matches and were the main venue for Southern Vipers, the most successful women’s team of the last decade. It seems a shame, therefore that whilst their men will play all 39 days of cricket in 2025 (even the Metro Cup, which is for men not taking part in the Hundred) at the Utilita Bowl, Hampshire Women will play 5 out of 14 games outside the county and will only play five stand-alone fixtures at their own county ground.

Cause for concern

I would really like the counties, or the ECB, or both, to publish the presentations used by the counties to pitch for Tier 1 status. Did Nottinghamshire and Surrey both go in there saying “We’d like Tier 1 status but we’ll outsource the playing venues to other counties”? Now, in defence of Nottinghamshire / The Blaze, their idea to have two Blast games as double headers at neighbouring counties when those counties are playing Nottinghamshire men is quite innovative. But to play 50% of your games outside of the county when the men play all their major games at Trent Bridge seems to go against the new county system and I find it hard to believe this was presented to the ECB.

For Surrey, one can only presume they have made Kent an offer they couldn’t refuse in order to outsource five of their seven Metro Bank games to Beckenham. If the plan was always for the team to play at Beckenham, surely the Tier 1 status should have been given to Kent instead? Meanwhile, Surrey men will play 37 of their 39 days of home cricket at the Oval. It is perhaps Surrey’s fixtures that are the most shocking of all the Tier 1 counties. We can only hope that Beth Barrett-Wild and the ECB will hold counties to account and will act swiftly to remove Tier 1 status for counties that don’t hold to what they promised in their pitch for that status.

Glimmers of hope in Tier 2

Gloucestershire, Northamptonshire, Kent and Sussex are the shining lights of equity in Tier 2. Their women’s teams are clearly operating on an equal footing with the men from day one. Yorkshire too deserve a special mention – clearly smarting from their failure to achieve Tier 1 status, their fixtures at Weetwood (the University ground in Leeds), and in York mean that they are using a range of venues similar to the fixture schedule for Yorkshire men.

Counties struggling to announce fixtures

Leicestershire, Glamorgan and Worcestershire cannot currently state a venue for at least half of their fixtures for next year. Derbyshire also have some gaps. The flooding issues at Worcester are well documented. Leicestershire also have been under a lot of financial pressure over the last few years. Glamorgan’s situation needs to be scrutinised carefully as they prepare for Tier 1 status in 2027. Failing to announce venues for most of their fixtures in 2025 is not perhaps the best beginning to that journey.