The European Twenty20 league is set to have its inaugural season in August this year.
Australia’s star cricketer Glenn Maxwell and legendary captain Steve Waugh are among the investors in a new European Twenty20 league, set to have its inaugural season in August this year.
The league, backed by the cricket boards of Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands, has been approved by the International Cricket Council (ICC). The European T20 Premier League’s (ETPL) founders include eminent Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan.
“Mainland Europe is not known for cricket,” Bachchan told Reuters from Sydney, where they unveiled the owners of the three teams, including the Amsterdam franchise owned by a group that includes Waugh and Jamie Dwyer, a five-time International Hockey Federation player of the year.
“It’s an opportunity to create a huge cricket ecosystem in and around Europe. With ETPL, we hope we can bring the magic of cricket euphoria to mainland Europe.”
The Belfast franchise was bought by Maxwell, while former New Zealand internationals Nathan McCullum and Kyle Mills are the co-owners of Edinburgh side.
As many as 33 ICC member nations are present in Europe, including full members England and Ireland. Scotland and Netherlands have participated in World Cups, while Italy will make their maiden T20 World Cup appearance next month.
“Italy’s World Cup qualification indicates Europe’s interest in cricket, and cricket being in the 2028 Olympics is another boost for Europe,” Bachchan said. “We hope to turn ETPL into one of the top T20 leagues in the world.”
Waugh hoped the Amsterdam franchise would inspire more kids to pursue career in cricket. “Franchise cricket has the world’s best players playing with locals,” the two-time World Cup winner told Reuters.
“At Amsterdam, the Dutch players will have the opportunity to play alongside players like Mitchell Marsh, the current Australia T20 captain, or Steve Smith, one of the all-time greats of the game. You can’t buy that kind of experience.”
The tournament, initially conceived as Euro T20 Slam, could not take off in 2019 and its planned launch was deferred for the second time last year.