BCB approves six-team, three-format domestic competition with corporate ownership

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has approved a new six-team domestic competition that will operate across three formats under a unified framework.

The board reached this decision at a virtual meeting held on Sunday, September 20, 2026. The T20 leg of the competition is therefore the immediate priority, though exact dates within December have not yet been announced. The tournament name has also not been finalised according to earlier reporting and has been omitted from this article accordingly.

Cricbuzz reported that the BCB also confirmed it will invite corporate and financial institutions to take ownership of the six teams.

"The Board agreed in principle to introduce a six-team domestic competition structure covering three formats - First Class (four-day), List A One-Day and List A T20 - under a single competition framework. Under the proposed structure, team ownership rights will be offered to established and reputed corporate and financial institutions in Bangladesh for an initial period of three years. The Board noted that the T20 competition will be the first event under the new structure, with a tentative window in December 2026," a n official statement from BCB read, as quoted by Cricbuzz.

What revised match fees will domestic players earn?

The BCB paired its structural announcement with a comprehensive upward revision of match fees across men's, women's and age-group cricket. The new rates apply at all domestic levels and represent a significant improvement in player remuneration throughout the Bangladesh cricket ecosystem.

In the men's game, four-day First-Class participants will earn BDT 1.5 lakh per fixture, while List A One-Day appearances carry a fee of BDT 1 lakh. T20 matches are set at BDT 80,000 per game. Cricketers turning out for the NCL second eleven will receive BDT 15,000 per match.

The women's domestic circuit has also seen a meaningful increase. A three-day match now attracts a fee of BDT 40,000, a One-Day fixture pays BDT 30,000 and a T20 game brings BDT 20,000. At the age-group level, the Bangladesh Under-19 daily allowance has been raised to BDT 20,000, exactly double the previous figure of BDT 10,000.

Who will own the teams and what is the ownership model?

The BCB has designed the ownership framework around institutional rather than individual backers, with rights granted for an initial three-year cycle. The board's intention is to anchor the competition in long-term financial stability by bringing established corporate houses into the domestic structure rather than relying on the existing divisional or association-based model.

The September 20 virtual meeting confirmed that ownership rights will be extended to reputed corporate and financial institutions operating in Bangladesh. The specific identities of the six franchise owners have not been confirmed in verified reports available at the time of writing and have therefore been omitted from this article. The BCB's preference for institutional ownership mirrors franchise models seen in other Asian cricket boards and is intended to provide each team with a stable commercial foundation across all three formats of the new competition.