Urban-Gro Positioned to Capture Growth as T20 Cricket Franchise Valuations Exceed $1.6 Billion and Global Media Expansion Accelerates
LAFAYETTE, Colo., March 25, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- urban-Gro, Inc.(NASDAQ:UGRO) ("urban-gro" or the "Company"), today announced being strategically positioned to capture the wave of growth from the rapidly emerging global T20 cricket ecosystem. This high value institutional asset class, driven by a combination of billion-dollar franchise transactions and accelerating international media expansion represents a monumental opportunity for the company.
According to a report by The Times of India, a consortium led by Kal Somani has acquired a majority stake in the Rajasthan Royals franchise at an implied valuation of approximately $1.63 billion, underscoring the increasing attractiveness of cricket franchises as premium global sports assets. urban-Gro is not affiliated with, and has no ownership interest in, the Rajasthan Royals franchise, and the referenced transaction is provided solely for general industry context. In parallel, Innovative Production Group (IPG), as reported by Yahoo Finance, has announced a strategic expansion of its T20 cricket footprint across Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Zimbabwe through its partnership with urban Gro, Inc operating as Flash Sports & Media.
Flash Sports & Media operates under urban-Gro, Inc., directly aligning urban-Gro with the expanding global cricket media and commercialization ecosystem. Together, these developments appear to signal a structural shift in the commercialization of cricket, with the sport transitioning from a regional entertainment platform into a globally monetized ecosystem supported by institutional capital, media infrastructure, and scalable revenue models.
"We believe the convergence of institutional capital and global media expansion is transforming T20 cricket into a scalable, high-value asset class," said Bradley Nattrass, Chief Executive Officer of urban-Gro, Inc. "As evidenced by the Rajasthan Royals transaction and the continued expansion of Flash Sports & Media into key international markets, we believe we are witnessing the emergence of a fully integrated global ecosystem spanning media, sponsorship, and infrastructure."
The rapid globalization of T20 cricket is expected to drive significant downstream investment across physical and operational infrastructure, including venue development, training facilities, controlled environments, and integrated project execution. These requirements are particularly pronounced across emerging markets, where new leagues and commercial platforms are being developed to support growing fan bases and expanding media distribution networks.
"Billion-dollar franchise valuations combined with multinational media expansion are creating a multi-layered, institutional growth cycle across the cricket ecosystem," added Nattrass. "urban-Gro, through its integrated platform and Flash Sports & Media, is strategically positioned to participate in both the commercial monetization layer and the infrastructure-driven buildout phase of this global expansion."
The company believes that the continued evolution of T20 cricket into a global sports and media platform will create sustained demand for infrastructure, commercialization platforms, and execution partners capable of supporting rapid, multi-market expansion.
This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities.
About Twenty20 (T20) Cricket:
Twenty20 is called T20 because it is a shortened, fast-paced format of cricket where each team plays maximum of 20 overs (120 legal balls). Introduced to increase entertainment and attract new audiences it was developed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 to make matches last roughly three and a half hours. For more information, visit: www.t20worldcup.com
About Indian Premier League:
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is ranked as the second-most valuable sports league in the world on a per-match basis, trailing only the NFL. Driven by a massive $6.2 billion media rights deal for 2023–2027, each IPL match is valued at approximately $13.4 million to $16.8 million, exceeding the per game value of the EPL and NBA.
For more information, visit: www.iplt20.com
About Major League Cricket:
MLC is heavily funded by prominent investors, including CEOs from Microsoft and Adobe, highlighting a strong financial backing aiming to make cricket a popular sport in the United States.
For more information, visit: www.majorleaguecricket.com
About urban-gro, Inc.
Following its recent combination of Flash, IPG, and urban-gro, Inc. ("urban-gro"), the Company has evolved into a diversified sports, media, and experiential marketing platform focused on the creation, production, and monetization of live events, original content, and branded fan experiences. The platform operates across multiple sports and entertainment verticals, leveraging proprietary intellectual property, strategic partnerships, and high-impact experiential activations to engage global audiences and deliver measurable value for brands, sponsors, and media partners. Flash integrates content creation, event execution, and media distribution into a unified, scalable model designed to capitalize on the growing global demand for premium sports and entertainment experiences.
For more information, visit https://flashsportsandmedia.com
https://www.theipggroup.com
Investor Contact:
[email protected]
[email protected]
Forward-Looking StatementsThis press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the Company's expectations, beliefs, or intentions regarding the potential benefits of its recent business combination with Flash Sports & Media, Inc., the development and commercialization of sports and media platforms, participation in the global T20 cricket ecosystem, anticipated market opportunities, expansion into new geographic markets, and potential future revenues, partnerships, or infrastructure-related opportunities. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as "anticipate," "believe," "expect," "intend," "plan," "may," "will," "could," "seek," "estimate," "potential," or similar expressions.
These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, estimates, and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and outcomes to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, without limitation: the Company's ability to successfully integrate Flash Sports & Media and realize anticipated synergies; the Company's ability to develop, monetize, and scale its sports, media, and experiential business lines; the timing and success of expansion into new markets; the Company's ability to establish or maintain strategic relationships, partnerships, or commercial arrangements; the extent to which industry developments referenced in this press release translate into opportunities for the Company; the Company's ability to generate revenues from its current or anticipated operations; general economic, market, and industry conditions; competitive dynamics within the sports and media sectors; regulatory and legal considerations; and the Company's ability to maintain compliance with applicable listing standards of The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC.
Additional factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements can be found in the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, as well as other filings made with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available at www.sec.gov.
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by law.
