Sri Lanka Cricket has decided to remove the controversial social media follower requirement for Icon and Star category players participating in the sixth season of the Lanka Premier League following backlash from the cricket community.
According to a NewsWire report, the updated version of the LPL Season 6 player registration and draft guide, issued on May 9, no longer includes the earlier requirement that players in the Icon and Star categories must possess a social media following exceeding 250,000 followers.
The tournament, scheduled to run from July 10 to August 5, had previously mandated that overseas cricketers hoping to enter the top-tier Icon category would need more than just cricketing credentials. Players were required to have featured in at least 75 T20 Internationals, played more than 100 franchise T20 matches, and appeared in 30 games over the last 18 months. In addition, the league had introduced a requirement for players to have more than 250,000 followers across social media platforms.
The same social media threshold was also applied to the Star category. Players in that bracket were required to have featured in at least 50 T20 Internationals, played more than 100 franchise T20 matches, and participated in a minimum of 30 games in the past 18 months, while also maintaining more than 250,000 social media followers.
The revised document has removed all references to minimum social media follower counts across player categories while retaining the cricket-related eligibility requirements, including T20 international appearances, franchise experience, and recent match activity.
Many criticised the move, highlighting the contradiction between Sri Lanka Cricket previously advising national players to limit social media use and concentrate on their performances, while the Lanka Premier League regulations appeared to favour players with large online followings.
The decision triggered widespread debate on social media, with critics arguing that player categories in Sri Lanka’s premier T20 tournament should be determined by cricketing merit rather than digital popularity.
Although the social media follower requirement has now been removed, the revised regulations still place significant emphasis on promotional responsibilities, including mandatory social media activity, fan engagement programmes, and tournament-related promotional appearances.
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