Leaving behind the bitter experiences of past editions, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is aiming to organize a more structured and successful Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) by actively involving key stakeholders.
Every year, BCB faces harsh criticism over the organization of the country’s only franchise T20 tournament. Poor coordination and lack of planning have plagued previous editions, preventing the board from earning much praise. Determined to change that narrative, BCB is taking a new approach ahead of the upcoming season.
If all goes as planned, the 12th edition of the BPL will be held between December and January. With less than five months to go, the BPL Governing Council has already started preparations and plans to begin discussions with stakeholders starting next week.
BPL Governing Council Chairman Mahbub Anam shared this during a press conference on Thursday following a board meeting at the BCB office in Mirpur.
“To make stakeholder involvement more inclusive in the tournament, we want to start gathering feedback from various stakeholders about the BPL starting next week.”
Mahbub, a senior BCB director, also outlined who will be included in these discussions:
“We’ll host a consultative program with journalists from various media houses. Another group will include cricketers, coaches, and technical staff. We’ll also talk to previous franchise owners—those who have no disputes with the BCB.”
“We’ll engage sponsors and commercial partners as well. Through an application process, we’ll also try to involve fans to understand what they want to see.”
In a previous board meeting, BCB President Aminul Islam Bulbul had stated that a professional sports management firm would be brought in to oversee a better-run BPL. Following through on that, BCB has already published an Expression of Interest (EOI) notice on its website and in newspapers. Mahbub expressed hope that a firm will be finalized by the first week of August.
Currently, the BPL Governing Council consists of Mahbub Anam, member secretary Nazmul Abedin, and member Fahim Sinha. The council is set to expand, with plans to bring in a cricket expert, a legal adviser, an economist, and a marketing specialist soon.
BCB hopes to hold the players’ draft in early October. To make that happen, they expect to receive a new tournament model from the sports management firm by late August or early September.
Meanwhile, August will also see the start of processes for awarding media rights, digital rights, and finalizing franchises. The Governing Council aims to complete franchise agreements by the end of September. Franchises will initially be given five-year contracts, with an option to renew for another five years.
