An Open Letter To The Current PSL Franchise Owners
To the eight PSL franchises,This letter is about the PSL, its future, and yours.
At its core, this is a letter about management. How the league is run, who runs it, and whether the franchises who have invested so much in it have any real say in how it operates. The financial losses are real and they matter, but they are largely a consequence of structural issues that have never been properly addressed. Fix the structure, and the finances have a chance. Leave it as it is, and the losses will keep coming regardless of how well the cricket goes.
What newer teams paid to join the league was not a valuation. It was an entry ticket, priced by a personal desire to be part of the league and a willingness to absorb heavy losses to do it. Fuelled by ambition rather than any honest assessment of the business. When the losses mount and there is no real structure protecting the investment, owners exit. The league is left weaker and the remaining franchises are left holding the consequences.
The relationship between the PCB and its franchise partners has never been one of equals or even partners. This is something all owners eventually feel and accept. That is not a criticism of any individual. It is simply an honest description of where things stand.
I care deeply about this league and I want to see it thrive. That is the only reason I am writing this. I am not speaking for anyone else. I am simply sharing my experience and what I believe the league needs.
I have sat where you sit, and asked the same questions that never received straight answers. Polite, softly worded emails and routine meetings are no longer enough. Three new owners have arrived, and so this is the moment to insist on real structural reform that protects both your investment and a tournament that belongs to the whole country. I would urge all of you to press the PCB on these four non-negotiable points:
1. A Professional and Robust Management Structure
The PSL should be run through a clear organisational structure, with defined departments and named people who are responsible for results. Operations, marketing, player affairs, fan engagement and finance all need dedicated teams that report into an empowered and competent head of the league.
As long as the PSL is treated as an add-on inside the wider PCB, it will remain exposed to individual moods and shifting priorities. A league of this size needs to function as a professional unit in its own right, with stability of staff, clarity of roles and a culture where decisions are guided by process rather than personal preference.
The consequences of not having that are visible every season. Rules change from one day to the next. A player is classified as international, then local, then international again. Franchises are left scrambling to rebuild their squads around decisions that should never have been ambiguous in the first place. This is not bad luck. It is what happens when there is no proper structure and no one is truly accountable for the decisions being made.
That starts with who is hired to run it. Senior PSL positions should be filled through a clear and competitive process that has franchise input at every important stage. That means agreeing the job description together, seeing a long list of candidates, being part of the interview process and the final decision. Other major leagues already work this way, and we should too. The PSL deserves to be run by the country's top talent. There is no reason to settle for PCB rejects.
2. Regular Reporting and Basic Transparency
During my time as a franchise owner, it was not unusual to go three or four months without any meaningful contact from PSL management. No updates, no reports, no meetings. For long stretches, franchises had no idea what work, if any, was being done on behalf of the league. Decisions would then arrive suddenly, already made, with no context and no room for input.
That cannot continue. There should be a fixed calendar of monthly meetings between PSL management and all franchises. Before each meeting, management should circulate an agenda and written reports on finances, operations, marketing, ticketing, player affairs and fan engagement.
Franchises must have the space to question numbers, ask for explanations and suggest alternatives. Those discussions should be minuted and followed up at the next meeting. And if action points are not delivered, there needs to be a consequence. PSL management should be held to the same standard of accountability that any professional organisation would expect from its leadership. Right now there is none. People can go missing for months, deliver nothing, and face no questions. That culture has to end.
3. Removal of the Broadcast Revenue Cap
At the moment, 95% of broadcast revenue is distributed among the eight franchises, but only up to a ceiling of around 3 billion rupees. The ceiling has already been reached. That means from this point forward, any growth in broadcast revenue is split 80% to the PCB and 20% to the franchises. Split across eight teams, each franchise walks away with just 2.5% of every additional rupee the league earns.
This cap was always a bad deal. It is now an urgent problem. For the newer franchises who came in at the highest fees in the league’s history, there is simply no path to reducing losses meaningfully while this structure remains in place. The cap has to be removed or fundamentally renegotiated. A league that grows its broadcast value should reward the teams that take the financial risk to make it worth watching.
4. Perpetual Ownership Rights
Franchises must push for permanent ownership rights. Without them, you are not really an owner. You are a tenant, spending your own money to build a brand, a fanbase and a business that you may one day be asked to bid for all over again. The PCB must commit in writing to offering every franchise a clear and guaranteed path to permanent ownership. Not just a verbal assurance. You must get it in writing, with a timeline.
The absence of perpetual rights goes beyond just the economics. It is also a control mechanism. As long as the PCB can take your franchise away, you will never feel truly free to speak up, push back or demand what is fair. That fear, whether spoken or not, sits in the room every time franchises consider challenging the board on anything meaningful. The PCB knows it. And it suits them perfectly.
We have already seen what happens to owners who speak too loudly. There was one particularly outspoken owner, considered reasonably good looking by his mother and khalas, who found out the hard way that a franchise without permanent rights is a franchise that can be taken away the moment you become inconvenient.
Outstanding Issues:
Beyond the structural reforms above, there are some issues that need to be addressed. Basic financial obligations not being met. A lack of consistency in decision making. Ever changing league rules and a lack of interest in our opinions or concerns.And despite us repeatedly flagging many of these issue, the PSL management isn’t fussed. Why? Because they know they can divide you.
Divide and RuleEvery time the franchises have got together and decided to push the PCB collectively on something, a familiar playbook gets activated. Owners start getting called individually. Dinners get arranged, usually at Aylanto.
An Open Letter To The Current PSL Franchise Owners
To the eight PSL franchises,This letter is about the PSL, its future, and yours.
At its core, this is a letter about management. How the league is run, who runs it, and whether the franchises who have invested so much in it have any real say in how it operates. The financial losses are real and they matter, but they are largely a consequence of structural issues that have never been properly addressed. Fix the structure, and the finances have a chance. Leave it as it is, and the losses will keep coming regardless of how well the cricket goes.
What newer teams paid to join the league was not a valuation. It was an entry ticket, priced by a personal desire to be part of the league and a willingness to absorb heavy losses to do it. Fuelled by ambition rather than any honest assessment of the business. When the losses mount and there is no real structure protecting the investment, owners exit. The league is left weaker and the remaining franchises are left holding the consequences.
The relationship between the PCB and its franchise partners has never been one of equals or even partners. This is something all owners eventually feel and accept. That is not a criticism of any individual. It is simply an honest description of where things stand.
I care deeply about this league and I want to see it thrive. That is the only reason I am writing this. I am not speaking for anyone else. I am simply sharing my experience and what I believe the league needs.
I have sat where you sit, and asked the same questions that never received straight answers. Polite, softly worded emails and routine meetings are no longer enough. Three new owners have arrived, and so this is the moment to insist on real structural reform that protects both your investment and a tournament that belongs to the whole country. I would urge all of you to press the PCB on these four non-negotiable points:
1. A Professional and Robust Management Structure
A potential organisation structure
The PSL should be run through a clear organisational structure, with defined departments and named people who are responsible for results. Operations, marketing, player affairs, fan engagement and finance all need dedicated teams that report into an empowered and competent head of the league.
As long as the PSL is treated as an add-on inside the wider PCB, it will remain exposed to individual moods and shifting priorities. A league of this size needs to function as a professional unit in its own right, with stability of staff, clarity of roles and a culture where decisions are guided by process rather than personal preference.
The consequences of not having that are visible every season. Rules change from one day to the next. A player is classified as international, then local, then international again. Franchises are left scrambling to rebuild their squads around decisions that should never have been ambiguous in the first place. This is not bad luck. It is what happens when there is no proper structure and no one is truly accountable for the decisions being made.
That starts with who is hired to run it. Senior PSL positions should be filled through a clear and competitive process that has franchise input at every important stage. That means agreeing the job description together, seeing a long list of candidates, being part of the interview process and the final decision. Other major leagues already work this way, and we should too. The PSL deserves to be run by the country's top talent. There is no reason to settle for PCB rejects.
2. Regular Reporting and Basic Transparency
During my time as a franchise owner, it was not unusual to go three or four months without any meaningful contact from PSL management. No updates, no reports, no meetings. For long stretches, franchises had no idea what work, if any, was being done on behalf of the league. Decisions would then arrive suddenly, already made, with no context and no room for input.
That cannot continue. There should be a fixed calendar of monthly meetings between PSL management and all franchises. Before each meeting, management should circulate an agenda and written reports on finances, operations, marketing, ticketing, player affairs and fan engagement.
Franchises must have the space to question numbers, ask for explanations and suggest alternatives. Those discussions should be minuted and followed up at the next meeting. And if action points are not delivered, there needs to be a consequence. PSL management should be held to the same standard of accountability that any professional organisation would expect from its leadership. Right now there is none. People can go missing for months, deliver nothing, and face no questions. That culture has to end.
PSL Management's idea of a monthly meeting
3. Removal of the Broadcast Revenue Cap
At the moment, 95% of broadcast revenue is distributed among the eight franchises, but only up to a ceiling of around 3 billion rupees. The ceiling has already been reached. That means from this point forward, any growth in broadcast revenue is split 80% to the PCB and 20% to the franchises. Split across eight teams, each franchise walks away with just 2.5% of every additional rupee the league earns.
This cap was always a bad deal. It is now an urgent problem. For the newer franchises who came in at the highest fees in the league’s history, there is simply no path to reducing losses meaningfully while this structure remains in place. The cap has to be removed or fundamentally renegotiated. A league that grows its broadcast value should reward the teams that take the financial risk to make it worth watching.
4. Perpetual Ownership Rights
All franchises currently rent the teams from the PCB. There is no ownership.
Franchises must push for permanent ownership rights. Without them, you are not really an owner. You are a tenant, spending your own money to build a brand, a fanbase and a business that you may one day be asked to bid for all over again. The PCB must commit in writing to offering every franchise a clear and guaranteed path to permanent ownership. Not just a verbal assurance. You must get it in writing, with a timeline.
The absence of perpetual rights goes beyond just the economics. It is also a control mechanism. As long as the PCB can take your franchise away, you will never feel truly free to speak up, push back or demand what is fair. That fear, whether spoken or not, sits in the room every time franchises consider challenging the board on anything meaningful. The PCB knows it. And it suits them perfectly.
We have already seen what happens to owners who speak too loudly. There was one particularly outspoken owner, considered reasonably good looking by his mother and khalas, who found out the hard way that a franchise without permanent rights is a franchise that can be taken away the moment you become inconvenient.
Outstanding Issues:
Beyond the structural reforms above, there are some issues that need to be addressed. Basic financial obligations not being met. A lack of consistency in decision making. Ever changing league rules and a lack of interest in our opinions or concerns.And despite us repeatedly flagging many of these issue, the PSL management isn’t fussed. Why? Because they know they can divide you.
Divide and RuleEvery time the franchises have got together and decided to push the PCB collectively on something, a familiar playbook gets activated. Owners start getting called individually. Dinners get arranged, usually at Aylanto.
Cafe Aylanto - The Hotspot equivalent for lahorie uncles/corporates
Somewhere between the Spanish chilli prawns and the Tarragon chicken, the conversation turns. You are offered a few extra family passes, a small scheduling favour, a hand on your arm and some flattery. Nothing that costs them much. Just enough to fracture whatever alignment had been building.
This is not diplomacy. It is a pattern that keeps franchises from ever presenting a united front. And it works, because we let it work. The moment any one of us accepts a private dinner in place of a proper answer, we signal that the franchise group can be managed cheaply, one owner at a time. Until you all agree, collectively and openly, to refuse these small gestures and insist on answers that apply to all eight franchises equally, this will keep happening.
It is not as if we haven’t tried. We always meet before governing council meetings. Positions get agreed. Lines get drawn. And then the meeting ends, the phones come out, and one by one the calls start. A Gloria Jeans coffee date here. A quiet dinner there. And by the time the week is out, whatever was agreed in that room has quietly dissolved.
Whatever the PCB raises with any one of you after a governing council meeting gets shared with the group within 24 hours. No exceptions. No private deals accepted without group sign-off. The moment that rule is in place and held to, those dinners become useless. Right now they work because what happens in them stays in them. Remove that protection and the entire playbook falls apart.
Home gamesWhy does the PCB decide which team plays how many home games, and at which stadium? There is no published criteria, no consistent rationale and no franchise input. In my experience, it came down to which franchise happened to be closest to management in the month the schedule was being put together. The number of home games a franchise gets directly determines how much it can charge a sponsor. The PCB has no skin in that game, so they have no incentive to care. Every franchise should have the same number of guaranteed home games, decided through a transparent and agreed process, not through frandship with the right person at the right time.
National Bank Stadium Karachi. A place not even free tickets can fill.
TicketingThis is something that doesn't get talked about enough.Every year, roughly half of all PSL tickets are given away for free by the PCB. Ticketing revenue is a major part of a franchise’ income, and yet roughly half of all PSL tickets are given away free by the PCB every season. The PCB would claim that they have many stakeholders they need to satisfy. And that was true for all of us. All franchises routinely buy thousands of extra tickets for their sponsors and guests. The difference is, the franchises pay full price for those additional tickets. The PCB should be limited to 10% of total PSL tickets. If they need any more, they should pay for them.
Outstanding paymentsThis is the one that should concern everyone most. Billions of rupees owed to franchises from PSL10 revenue, broadcast income and central sponsorship deals remain unpaid. It took significant effort by two franchises to ensure that the parties with outstanding dues were not allowed to participate in this year’s bid process. That it took that level of pushback just to enforce a basic contractual obligation tells you everything you need to know. Franchises should not have to fight this hard to receive money that is contractually theirs.
Small thingsSometimes it is not the big decisions that reveal how an institution sees you. Sometimes it is the small ones. We have all just seen a great recent example.
The new Rawalpindi franchise spent time, money and creative energy building a unique brand identity around one word: Pindiz.
Their entire campaign was built on the fact that this was the first cricket team with a single word name. Regardless of what anyone thinks of the name, it was a distinctive idea and one the PCB had approved. It carries personality, exactly the kind of thing that makes franchise cricket work.
PSL referred to them as the Rawalpindi Pindiz in the official schedule
But when the schedule was released, the team was listed as the Rawalpindi Pindiz. Nobody asked. Nobody explained. Just a quiet override of a decision that was not theirs to make. Most of you stayed silent. It was not your fight. It did not affect you.
But that is precisely the problem. When the PCB oversteps with one franchise, it is a signal to all of you. The silence of the other seven is what makes it possible. If you had stood together and said this was not right, it would have been a very different conversation. Instead, the PCB learned something useful: that franchises will not stand up for each other. They only need to deal with you one at a time. That lesson will be used again and again.
A word of warningI want to be honest about where this league is heading if nothing changes. Revenue growth is stalling. The model depends too heavily on a small number of external partners doing well. New tournaments are being planned, which will add further strain on an already stretched operations and commercial team. And perhaps most importantly, the PSL has no independent structure of its own. When the PCB leadership changes, the league gets destabilised. Everything that has been built rests on individual relationships and personal preferences rather than institutions and process. The foundation isnt strong, and that is a huge risk.
The Bangladesh Premier League.Twelve years old and still struggling. Franchises defaulting on player payments. Owners walking away days before a season starts. A franchise changing hands at midnight because they could not find sponsors. Players boycotting matches over unpaid wages. Government intervention required just to get players paid. The BCB built a league without building a structure around it. The franchises were never genuine partners and the result is a tournament that has never fulfilled its potential and is now actively losing credibility. The PSL is not there yet. But we are not too far off, (thank you Stallionz). Without the changes being asked for in this letter, this is the direction of travel.
I am not claiming to have all the answers. 
I am simply being honest about what I have observed and about my hopes for where this league can go if the right changes are made.
This is a difficult moment for franchise cricket globally. The easy growth years are over and most leagues are struggling. Only the leagues that are well run and where boards and franchises actually work together will make it through.
The time for change is now. And you know what it will take.
All Eight
The fellowship minus a grey haired member
Not everyone in this group finds it easy to push back on the board. You have other interests, other relationships, and other reasons to always be on good terms. That is completely understandable. But consider the alternative. A league that continues to underperform, revenues that continue to stagnate, and a structure that will never change because nobody was willing to push for it.
The only thing that can move things forward is all eight franchises deciding together that the old way no longer works. Not seven. Not five. All eight. That means standing up for each other even when something does not affect you directly. Because the franchise that stays silent when a fellow owner is wronged is making it easier for the same thing to happen to them next.
Every time one owner accepts a private dinner instead of a collective answer, every time one franchise breaks ranks for a small favour, the entire group loses ground. Stand together, speak with one voice, and refuse to be managed individually on questions that affect all of you equally. That is the only path to a PSL that is actually worth what you all have and will put into it.
It will require courage, patience and a willingness to hold your ground.In summary, it will take balls, and the balls are in your court.
With Love,Ali TareenPSL Superfan
