Waugh, Maxwell named as European T20 league franchise owners

Sydney, Jan 21 (PTI) European T20 Premier League on Wednesday announced Steve Waugh and Glenn Maxwell among others as franchise owners of the much-delayed tournament.

The ETPL, a global multi-country franchise league backed by the cricket boards of the Netherlands (KNCB), Ireland (CI) and Scotland (CS), has been sanctioned by the ICC.

The league, launched last year, will be a six-team competition, involving 34 matches.

The ETPL announced the owners of its first three franchises -- Amsterdam, Edinburgh and Belfast. The tournament is scheduled to begin in the late summer of 2026.

Amsterdam will be owned by a group led by Australian cricket great Waugh, former Australian hockey team captain Jamie Dwyer, and Tim Thomas, former CEO of the Centre for Australia-India Relations and former Partner at KPMG Australia, according to a statement.

Edinburgh will be owned by former New Zealand internationals Nathan McCullum, and Kyle Mills.

Belfast will be owned by Australian all-rounder Maxwell, together with Rohan Lund, former Group CEO of NRMA, alongside strategic partners to be announced in due course.

"I've always been selective about where I invest my time and energy in cricket. Franchise cricket has expanded quickly, but this opportunity stood out because it is driven by aspiration and long-term thinking," Waugh said in the statement.

"In many ways, it marks a return to the game for me -- but in a very different role. This is about helping uphold the standards and spirit of cricket while supporting its growth into Europe, which remains the game’s last great frontier." Maxwell stated: "I am thrilled to be involved with the Irish Wolves, where we will build a culture of fun, family and playing without fear. The Irish people love their sport and Cricket Ireland have made huge strides in expanding the game over the last two decades." The ETPL is owned and operated through a joint venture between Rules Global ("Rules X") and Cricket Ireland, a full-time ICC member.

The league is co-founded by Bollywood star Abhishek Bachchan, Saurav Banerjee, Priyanka Kaul and Dhiraj Malhotra, and is further supported through formal partnerships with CS and KNCB. PTI SSC SSC TAP