PSL set to become a 6-team league from 2018

Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) ambitious and rewarding Twenty20 league Pakistan Super League (PSL) is all set to become a six-team tournament in the 2018 edition. The PSL was restricted to five teams for the first two seasons while the discussions for the sixth were held ahead of the 2017 version of the league but couldn’t pass through.

PSL announced that the Schon Group has won the bid for the sixth team that will represent the Multan region of Pakistan. They met the reserve price of $ 5.2 million per year set by the PCB to be awarded the ownership of the team. PCB had shortlisted five names for the new franchise – Faisalabad, FATA, Hyderabad, Dera Murad Jamali and Multan.

It has eventually been decided that the team will belong to Multan. The Schon Group is a United Arab Emirates-based company that also operates in Karachi, Pakistan. While they have a wide range of business interests Real estate is the core involvement of the group.

BREAKING: #HBLPSL congratulates Schon Group on meeting the reserve price of $5.2 m per year for the 6th team #Multan #AbKhel6Ka

— PakistanSuperLeague (@thePSLt20) June 1, 2017

5 other franchises

The five pre-existing franchises are Islamabad United, the champions of the inaugural edition of the league owned by Leonine Global Sports which was bought for US $ 15 million. Ary Media Group is the owner of the Karachi Kings franchise they bought in 2016 for USD 26 million, Lahore Qalandars of the Qatar Lubricants Company Limited was sold by the PCB for USD 25 million.

Current champions Peshawar Zalmi belong to the Haier Pakistan for which they had to shell US $ 16 million, Quetta Gladiators who represent the Quetta, Balochistan region of the country is owned by the Omar Associates and they paid the PCB US $ 11 million for a ten-year agreement.

The introduction of a new team will also see the number of matches in the league increase from 24 to 34. PSL chairman Najam Sethi had earlier said that after successfully hosting the final of PSL 2016 at Lahore, they want to host 8 matches in Pakistan this time.