PCB officials travelled to Lord's and New York this week, as the Pakistan Super League's push for global expansion ramped up ahead of next month's franchise auction.
At the meeting in New York, which was attended by an exclusive group of potential investors, PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi and PSL CEO Salman Naseer revealed that next year's tournament would again clash directly with the IPL. While partly due to the timing of the men's T20 World Cup, which will take place in February and March in India, the new window marks a slight shift forward from last year's edition, which was played in April and May. In 2026, the IPL and PSL will begin on the same day, with the PSL set to feature more matches than ever in its longest season to date.
In addition to the meeting at the Plaza Hotel in New York, PCB officials also held a gathering at Lord's earlier this month, looking to engage potential investors. Two new franchises will be added to the existing six for next year's PSL, with an auction set to take place on January 8 in Islamabad where investors will bid for the rights to the new teams. After the commercial rights for the original five franchises ran out this year, all five chose to renew for another decade. There is some uncertainty over the future of Multan Sultans, who joined the competition in 2018, with franchise owner Ali Tareen stating last month that he would not renew his ownership.
The meeting in New York was aimed at targeting American-Pakistani business figures along with South Asian investors from the finance and technology sectors. There has reportedly been strong global interest in the new franchises, standing alongside significant long-term investment from the PCB. Selling points to new investors include cricket's significant in Pakistani culture, alongside the country's massive population of 250 million people.
Major stadium upgrades have also been outlined, including to Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, as well as the potential to expand the venues which host PSL matches, deepening the PSL's reach across Pakistan. There are also plans to launch a dedicated OTT streaming platform in the next few weeks.
Next year's competition will also see teams compete for record prize money. The winning franchise will receive $500,000, the runners-up will get $300,000 while $200,000 will go to the franchise deemed to be investing the most in player development.
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