The Pakistan Super League season 12 (PSL 2027) will be played from March 18 to May 2 and is set to clash with the IPL 2027 once more. From its commencement in 2016 until the 2024 edition, the competition was contested in February and March.
However, due to ICC tournaments, including the Champions Trophy hosted by Pakistan last year and the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka this year, it has to be moved to the April–May window.
After Walee Technologies, which owns the media rights from 2029, and Rawalpindiz, one of the two new franchises, lamented the lack of broadcasting revenue in the current window, the PCB and remaining franchises discussed holding PSL 12 in January and February in a governing council meeting last month.
As per Cricinfo, Walee Technologies argued that during the holy month of Ramadan, most advertisers use up all of their marketing and TV ad budgets, leaving little for the broadcasters. The last two PSL seasons were conducted after Ramadan, and the next year's edition will begin in early February and run until early March.
The governing council was unable to agree on the window during the meeting, and it is believed that the PCB emailed all eight franchises to ask for their preferences. The March-May window was approved by the majority of voters.
Also, due to the harsh winters and visibility severely restricted by fog in Punjab, where three of the four traditional PSL venues—Lahore, Multan, and Rawalpindi—are located, the January-February window was deemed unviable.
“HBL PSL 11 showed the world what this league is capable of – thrilling moments that had the whole nation transfixed, record crowds, record broadcasts. HBL PSL 12 will raise the bar further. We are committed to delivering another outstanding season and look forward to seeing all eight franchises compete once again for the title," PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi stated on the PCB website.
The PCB made no mention of the venues in its media release. The event has largely been held in Karachi, Lahore, Multan, and Rawalpindi since it was brought to Pakistan in its entirety in 2020, having previously been hosted or co-hosted by the UAE.
The PCB included Faisalabad and Peshawar as new venues for last year's season, although PSL 11 was limited to Lahore and Karachi due to the government's fuel-saving measures following the West Asia crisis. Except for the final, the event was held behind closed doors.
