Lanka Premier League set to expand to six teams next season

Colombo, Sri Lanka — 22 August 2026: The Lanka Premier League (LPL) is set to expand to six teams next season, with the tournament scheduled to return in the same July–August 2027 window. The addition of a sixth franchise is expected to bring more players, matches and opportunities as the league continues to grow.

The tournament window is also expected to be extended by around one week to accommodate the additional team and matches.

The latest LPL season recorded strong growth across television and digital platforms. The tournament reached cricket fans across South Asia, the Middle East, North America and the Caribbean through its international broadcast and digital distribution.

Coverage included major cricket markets such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, as well as Malaysia, the West Indies, North America and the Middle East. The league recorded an estimated global reach of more than 500 million viewers across television and digital platforms.

South Asia remained at the heart of the LPL’s audience, with India representing its largest potential market and strong interest also coming from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Coverage in the Middle East helped the tournament connect with the large South Asian cricket community living in the region.

Digital viewership was one of the strongest areas of growth, increasing by approximately 50% compared with the previous season. Television audiences also grew, helped by wider distribution across key cricket markets.

Anil Mohan, founder and CEO of IPG Group, the event rights holder of the Lanka Premier League, said the season showed the continued progress of the tournament.

“This season of the Lanka Premier League has been an outstanding success and represents an important step forward for the tournament,” Mohan said.

“We have seen Sri Lanka’s leading players, emerging local talent and international cricketers competing together. This has produced competitive and exciting cricket throughout the season.”

Mohan said the growth in television and digital audiences was also an encouraging sign for the future of the league.

“The growth we have seen across television and digital platforms gives us confidence that the LPL is becoming a stronger and more recognised international cricket league,” he said.

The focus will now shift to next season, with organisers planning to increase the competition from five to six teams and extend the tournament by approximately one week.

“For next year, our plan is to expand the Lanka Premier League from five teams to six teams and extend the tournament window by approximately one additional week during the July–August period,” Mohan said.

“This will allow us to bring more players into the competition, create more high-quality matches and commercial opportunities, and further increase the league’s reach.”

With digital viewership up by approximately 50%, growing television audiences and plans for a sixth team, the Lanka Premier League will head into next season looking to build on its growing presence across South Asia and other international cricket markets.

Samantha Dodanwela, Tournament Director of the Lanka Premier League, also applauded the tournament’s commercial success while emphasising that the quality of cricket and opportunities created for young players remained at the heart of the event.

“From a commercial perspective, the success of this season is extremely encouraging and demonstrates the growing value and appeal of the Lanka Premier League,” Dodanwela said.

“However, the paramount success for us is always the cricket. We have seen some outstanding performances throughout the tournament, with young Sri Lankan players getting the opportunity to showcase their talent alongside experienced local and international cricketers.

“The LPL is an important platform for the next generation of Sri Lankan players to develop, compete at the highest level and gain exposure in front of a growing international audience. Seeing young talent step up and make an impact on this stage has been one of the most rewarding aspects of the tournament, and we want to create even more opportunities for them as we expand to six teams next season.”