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Texan billionaire Allen Stanford aims to bring professional cricket to Bermuda by the end of next year.

The cricket-loving finance magnate is setting up a professional 20/20 league in the Caribbean and wants Bermuda to be involved.

The team will be signed up on full-time year-round contracts, paid by Stanford out of his own pocket.

A pro team has already been set up in Antigua and six more are being established over the next four months in Cayman, Montserrat, Nevis, St Lucia, U.S Virgin Islands and Anguilla.

Those seven teams will form the embryonic Stanford Pro 20/20 pro league.

Bermuda will be brought into the fold, along with 14 other teams including Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago, by the end of 2008.

The moneybags philanthrophist has always stated his aim is to bring back the glory days of West Indies cricket.

And he has already ploughed millions into re-generating the game with his Stanford 20/20 knockout tournament with the next one scheduled for January and February of 2008.

But the pro-league will take his one-man campaign to breathe new life into the ailing powerhouse of the world game to a new level.

Laurie-Ann Holding, spokesperson for the Stanford 20/20 organisation, said: "The only way for athletes to be truly professional is for them to be full time.

"This is what these pro teams will do, give talented young cricketers the opportunity to be full time with their training and practice like all other pro athletes.

"Ultimately this benefits Mr Stanford's own tournament - the Stanford 20/20 Regional Tournament - and will attract even larger audiences with more competitive matches.

"This is the only way to revive the sport and also ensure it is an exportable commodity to the world on television which can then assist with making the league self sustaining and ensure it continues to grow." She said Antigua had been chosen as the first pro team because it was the home of the original Stanford 20/20 tournament, which took place for the first time last year. Bermuda featured in the televised tournament but suffered a thumping loss to Jamaica in the opening round.

"Six new teams are being formed right now. Bermuda will be added in 2008," she added.

At the unveiling of the Antigua team, Stanford commented:

"These players are going to live, eat and breathe cricket," said Sir Allen Stanford. "They are going to be paid for it. Their job will be to play cricket and they will make a living doing so. The West Indies cannot help but benefit from the calibre of cricket that we are going to see come out of this team and the league when it all comes together. We are very excited about what this means for West Indies cricket!"[[In-content Ad]]

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