Cricket’s global expansion push has taken a major step forward with Europe emerging as the sport’s next franchise frontier. The European T20 Premier League (ETPL) on Monday confirmed Indian cricket legend Rahul Dravid as the owner of the Dublin Guardians, finalising the league’s six-team structure ahead of its 2026 debut.
The development signals a strong push to establish Europe as a new growth market for franchise T20 cricket, backed by administrators, investors, and international stars.
The announcement was made at a landmark ETPL event in Dublin, where Dravid was formally unveiled as the franchise owner. The gathering also brought together league stakeholders, franchise representatives, and senior European cricket officials to mark the completion of the inaugural team line-up.
“What attracted me to ETPL was the larger vision behind it, the opportunity to help grow cricket in Europe by strengthening grassroots development and creating pathways for emerging talent across Ireland and Europe,” Dravid said on the occassion. “Dublin already has a passionate cricketing community and enormous potential for growth. Nurturing the next generation has always been important to me, and I believe ETPL can play a meaningful role in that journey.”
The ETPL is being positioned as a long-term project aimed at accelerating cricket’s footprint across Europe through a cross-border franchise model. With participation from multiple national boards and private stakeholders, the league is designed to bridge the gap between Associate nations and top-tier international cricket while also tapping into the commercial potential of new markets.
The league is expected to feature several global T20 stars, including Mitchell Marsh, Tim David, Mitchell Santner, Liam Livingstone, Glenn Maxwell, Faf du Plessis and Heinrich Klaasen, creating opportunities for emerging European talent to share dressing rooms with established international names.
6-TEAM STRUCTURE COMPLETE
With Dravid’s inclusion as Dublin Guardians owner, ETPL has now finalised its six-team framework featuring franchises from Dublin, Belfast, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Rotterdam and Amsterdam. The launch event in Dublin also featured franchise stakeholders including Vipul Aggarwal from Glasgow and former South Africa cricketer Jonty Rhodes, who is associated with the Rotterdam franchise.
The event was also attended by ETPL co-founders Abhishek Bachchan, Saurav Banerjee, Priyanka Kaul and Dhiraj Malhotra, underlining strong backing from both sports and business leadership.
The ETPL has been launched in partnership with Cricket Ireland, Cricket Scotland and the Royal Dutch Cricket Association. The competition aims to introduce a cross-border franchise model that links multiple European cities under one structured league system.
ETPL’s franchise and owners:
Dublin franchise – Rahul Dravid
Belfast franchise – Glenn Maxwell and Rohan Lund
Edinburgh franchise – Kyle Mills, Nathan McCullum & Rachel Wiseman
Glasgow franchise –Vipul Aggarwal and Chris Gayle
Amsterdam franchise – Steve Waugh, Jamie Dwyer and Tim Thomas
Rotterdam franchise – Jonty Rhodes, Faf du Plessis, Glashin and Samir Shah, with Madhukar Shree as Managing Partner
– Ends
