The Pakistan Cricket Board and the eight Pakistan Super League franchise owners convened at a recent governing council meeting in London on September 1 to explore the possibility of advancing the tournament to January of the following year.
According to sources familiar with the discussions, the proposal to stage the PSL earlier in the calendar was put forward by Walee Technologies, the league’s media rights holder. The company cited limited advertising revenue during the traditional April-May window, which falls immediately after Ramazan, when many businesses have already depleted their annual marketing and television advertising budgets.
However, sources indicate that franchise owners have also expressed concerns regarding the full payment of broadcast revenues owed to them regardless of the scheduling window, particularly given the current state of Walee’s advertising budgets following underwhelming financial returns from television rights. Under the existing PSL agreement with the franchises, all eight teams receive 95 percent of broadcast revenue from the central revenue pool.
The first nine editions of the PSL, spanning from 2016 to 2024, were conducted during the February-March window. The league was subsequently shifted to April and May over the past two seasons due to the Champions Trophy in 2025 and the T20 World Cup this year, which resulted in the PSL running concurrently with the Indian Premier League.
One notable advantage of aligning the PSL with the IPL has been the consistent availability of players, a departure from earlier seasons when concurrent T20 leagues around the world often disrupted squad availability. However, the proposed January window would reintroduce this challenge, as the PSL would once again compete with the SA20 and the Big Bash League for international talent.
The PCB would also face significant logistical hurdles if the tournament were moved to January and February, given the harsh winter conditions in Punjab, home to three of the four traditional PSL venues: Lahore, Multan, and Rawalpindi. Temperatures in the region frequently drop into the early single digits after sunset, and dense fog often severely affects visibility. It has been suggested that the tournament could commence in Karachi, where winter weather remains relatively moderate, before relocating to Punjab and Peshawar as the season progresses and conditions improve.
Pakistan currently has a clear window from mid-November through March, with no home or away international fixtures scheduled. The team is set to host Sri Lanka and England during October and November, followed by a two-Test series against New Zealand in March, which serves as their final World Test Championship assignment of the current cycle.
Walee Technologies holds the broadcast and digital rights for the PSL in Pakistan through 2029 and secured the international media rights for the 2026 edition. The company is also the owner of Rawalpindiz, one of the two new franchises introduced alongside the six existing teams this year.
The governing council, which includes representatives from the PCB and the owners of the eight franchises, additionally considered expanding the league’s presence throughout the year by pursuing initiatives beyond traditional cricket.
Sources indicate that the governing council also discussed the potential entry into Esports, a rapidly growing market in Pakistan. Some franchise owners have raised concerns about declining interest in the PSL amid Pakistan’s underwhelming performances across formats, and diversifying into Esports could attract a younger and more engaged audience.
The governing council further examined the possibility of organising a mid-year tournament within the framework of the existing rights agreement with the franchises and broadcaster. This proposal, reportedly initiated by the PCB, aims to create an additional revenue stream for both the teams and the broadcast partner.
Ahsan Iftikhar Nagi is a cricket journalist based in Lahore
