ETPL unveils Steve Waugh, Glenn Maxwell, Kyle Mills as owners

The European T20 Premier League (ETPL) is set to launch this year, with Steve Waugh and Glenn Maxwell among those announced as franchise owners. The six-team league, scheduled to begin around August 26, will also feature former New Zealand players Kyle Mills and Nathan McCullum in ownership roles. These former Australian and New Zealand players were unveiled as ETPL franchise owners in Sydney on Tuesday.

League owner Abhishek Bachchan stated, "We are here in Sydney to announce the first three teams: Amsterdam, Belfast, and Edinburgh. Later next month, we will announce the next three teams. We have been working towards this for the last two years and are very excited that it has all come together as planned."

Ownership Details:

• Amsterdam: Owned by former Australia captain Steve Waugh, five-time World Player of the Year and Olympic gold medalist Jamie Dwyer, and Tim Thomas, former CEO of the Centre for Australia-India Relations.
• Edinburgh: Owned by former New Zealand players Nathan McCullum and Kyle Mills.
• Belfast: Promoted by Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell and Rohan Lund, former Group CEO of NRMA, with additional strategic partners to be announced.

Steve Waugh commented on his involvement, saying, "This opportunity stood out because it is driven by aspiration and long-term thinking. It marks a return to the game for me in a different role—helping uphold the standards and spirit of cricket while supporting its growth into Europe."

Glenn Maxwell expressed his excitement about leading the Belfast franchise, the Irish Wolves: "I am thrilled to be involved where we will build a culture of fun, family, and playing without fear. The Wolves and the ETPL will accelerate cricket's growth in Ireland, and I feel super proud to be leading the franchise in its inaugural year."

League Schedule and Structure:
The ETPL will take place in an August-September window, slightly overlapping with the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) but avoiding clashes with The Hundred in England and Major League Cricket (MLC) in the USA. The league is an ICC-sanctioned, global multi-country franchise competition backed by the cricket boards of the Netherlands, Ireland, and Scotland. It will feature six teams and 34 matches.

Bachchan added that details regarding the salary cap and broadcast timings are being finalized, with an announcement expected once all six teams are confirmed. The ETPL was originally planned for last year but was postponed by a year.