MCC urges members to attend Women's T20 World Cup final to avoid embarrasment of 2017

Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) chief executive and secretary Robert Lawson has urged the club's members to attend the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 final at Lord's on Sunday, July 5, irrespective of whether England seals their spot in the summit clash after their semi-final against South Africa on Thursday, July 2.

In his letter to the club members, Lawson stressed that it was crucial to MCC's reputation that they avoid a repeat of the scenes from the Women's World Cup final in 2017, when there was low attendance in the members-only areas at the pavilion end.

During the thrilling final, a packed crowd of 24,000 fans witnessed England's nervy nine-run win over India, but the vacant seats in the members-only areas caught everyone’s attention as MCC was heavily criticised by both its members and the media.

Hence, a similar incident could be far more damaging to MCC’s reputation this time around, as acknowledged by the club hierarchy during a Special General Meeting in July last year.

In 2023, the MCC was subjected to scathing criticism by the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) report, which stated "The 'home of cricket' is still a home principally for men."

It was only in 1998 that the MCC opened its membership to women, ending more than two centuries as an exclusively male institution since its founding in 1787. Today, the club has around 18,350 full members, but women make up fewer than 3% of that total.

The ICEC report also highlighted the "truly appalling" reality that England Women have never played a Test match at Lord's. That will change next week when England host India in a landmark Test at the iconic venue.

"On Sunday, we have the honour of hosting the ICC Women's T20 World Cup Final. Yesterday's semi-final saw Australia continue their dominant run and we look forward to welcoming them to Lord's this weekend. Tomorrow evening we will find out which of England or South Africa will join them,” Lawson wrote in his letter to members as per ESPNCricinfo.

"We can expect a very high-quality match this Sunday. I ask that you show your continued support for the game and for your Club by using your ticket(s) and coming to the match, regardless of which teams have made it to the Final. It is vital to MCC's reputation that there is no repeat of the situation which occurred at the ICC Women's World Cup Final at Lord's in 2017, when there was a clear disparity between the Public Stands (visibly full) and the sparsely-occupied Pavilion. That same principle applies to the Members' Friends' Enclosures,” he added.

Record-breaking attendance in World Cup

The tournament has attracted impressive crowds throughout, including at Lord's, where 27,000 spectators turned up for Sunday's group-stage double-header. South Africa secured a tense win over Bangladesh to book their place in the semi-finals after Australia eliminated India with victory in the second match.

More than 160,000 tickets have been sold during the tournament, setting a new attendance record for a women's ICC event and more than doubling the total from the 50-over Women's World Cup held in England nine years ago. The competition has also produced record crowds for women's matches at both Edgbaston, where 18,814 watched the India vs Pakistan fixture, and The Oval, which welcomed 21,018 fans for England's clash against New Zealand.