The Pakistan Super League has announced that two new franchises that will be added to the roster next year as part of expansion plans.
The PSL has completed 10 seasons and is now looking to widen its reach by adding to the existing pool of six franchises - Lahore Qalandars, Karachi Kings, Islamabad United, Multan Sultans, Peshawar Zalmi and Quetta Gladiators.
The additional teams will add to the competitive nature of the tournament which last season saw four out of the six teams qualify for the play-offs. More teams would mean lesser room for complacency and greater significance on each win.
Which cities are in line to get a PSL franchise?
On Friday, the PSL announced the process for the creation of two new franchises, with the team auction set for January 6, 2026.
The successful bidders at the auction will get to choose from six cities to set up base. They are – Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Hyderabad, Sialkot, Muzaffarabad and Gilgit.
There were rumours of Gilgit and Faisalabad being shortlisted but the Pakistan board refuted the claims.
This will run concurrent to contract renewals of the existing six franchises.
The Pakistan board completed valuation process for the PSL teams and sent renewal offer letters reflecting the new franchise fees for the next 10 years to the teams.
PSL CEO Salman Naseer said teams unwilling to renew the contracts based on latest valuations can opt out, with new owners taking their place.
“Under their existing agreements, teams have the first right of renewal for the next 10 editions based on that valuation,” Naseer said.
“After that, if any franchise chooses not to renew, those team rights will be offered through an open process where new investors can come in.”
Will all teams renew contract?
There is one team that has been in the news for this very issue. Multan Sultans have been involved in a protracted back and forth with the Pakistan board over a number of issues including expansion plans, overseas investments and clarity over revenue sharing.
Multan owner Ali Tareen has been particularly vocal, airing all grievances and boardroom chatter to various media platforms.
Recently, he was reportedly served a legal notice from the board which threated termination of contract unless the team owner offered an apology.
However, Tareen tore up the supposed legal notice in his video on social media, ending any chance of reconciliation.
Now, the board has apparently decided to not renew Multan’s contract and instead search for new owners.
Current team owner Tareen revealed on social media that he has not been offered the new contract letter, pointing to possibly the end of Multan Sultans as a franchise.
How much money is involved?
Multan were the sixth team to join PSL, winning the rights to own a franchise. According to reports, the Multan franchise paid the PSL over $6 million per year from 2017.
One expects the new team owners to pay significantly more to buy into the league. There were some concerns over the size of the revenue pie that would be shared by more teams.
But the league recently announced a bumper rise in the title sponsorship for the tournament, with the value growing by 500 per cent since the first season.
According to reports, the latest title sponsorship deal with HBL is worth a little over $26 million for two seasons.
The Pakistan board has also announced a substantial increase in rewards for the franchises.
On Friday, PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi announced a rewards plan for the teams, where the tournament winners will get an additional prize of $500,000 – which will be over and above the tournament prize money.
The championship prize is likely to see a jump from last season’s amount of half a million dollars.
