The International Cricket Council (ICC) has reportedly dropped plans to bring back a global franchise T20 tournament similar to the now-defunct Champions League Twenty20 (CLT20).

According to The Guardian, the ICC will not introduce the proposed competition, or any other new multilateral tournament, before 2031. The move comes after strong opposition from the cricket boards of India, Australia and England.

CLT20 Was Scrapped In 2014

The Champions League Twenty20 was played between 2009 and 2014 and featured some of the best franchise teams from major T20 leagues around the world.

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Teams from competitions such as the Indian Premier League (IPL), Big Bash League and other domestic T20 leagues took part in the tournament. However, CLT20 was eventually discontinued due to low viewership, disappointing commercial returns and financial losses.

With franchise cricket now much bigger and more established, the ICC believed that the time was right to revisit the idea.

ICC Wanted Its Own Club World Cup

The proposed tournament was seen as the ICC’s answer to football’s FIFA Club World Cup. The cricket governing body believed a global franchise competition could open up a new source of revenue while also allowing it to benefit from the huge popularity of T20 leagues.

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The ICC does not directly earn revenue from privately-run franchise leagues around the world. As a result, a tournament featuring the leading teams from these leagues could have given the governing body a greater role in the rapidly growing T20 market.

The ICC had also considered introducing four-team T20 tournaments during bilateral series windows.

India, Australia And England Oppose The Idea

However, the boards of India, Australia and England were reportedly against adding another major tournament to an already packed cricket calendar.

The three boards were said to be “adamant” that there was simply no room for another global competition.

Their position was that a CLT20-style tournament could only be considered if some of the existing ICC events were reduced or removed. That could mean cutting down on competitions such as the World Cups or the Champions Trophy.

With no agreement between the ICC and the major cricket boards, the proposed tournament has now been shelved.

2027-2031 Calendar Likely To Remain Similar

The deadlock means the ICC’s Future Tours Programme for the 2027-2031 cycle is expected to remain largely similar to the current schedule.

One possible change could be an expanded World Test Championship, but there is unlikely to be room for the proposed global franchise competition.

ICC Looking For New Revenue Sources

The ICC’s push for new tournaments is also linked to concerns over its future commercial income.

The governing body expects its revenue from Indian broadcasters to come under pressure as broadcasters look to reduce their spending on cricket rights.

With India contributing a major share of the money flowing into international cricket, any reduction in broadcast investment could have a significant impact on the ICC.

The governing body therefore sees new competitions and other commercial opportunities as ways to increase revenue and expand the global game.


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