June 7, 2025 - The Champions League T20, once known as the World Cup of club cricket, was held in the style of the UEFA Champions League in football. The three big boards of world cricket — the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Cricket Australia (CA), and Cricket South Africa (CSA) — used to jointly organise the Champions League T20. However, it stopped after 2014 owing to low crowd attendance, lack of fan interest and poor response from sponsors.

Now, after almost a decade, talks have started about bringing back a Club Cricket World Cup. This tournament may return in a new form called the World Club Championship. This information was shared by Richard Gould, CEO of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), another major cricket board in the world.

Plans and Challenges

Gould said, “It is in our plans. There will be a World Club Championship for both men and women at some point. That is the next logical step.”

Since the IPL started in 2008, franchise cricket has grown all over the world. The Champions League T20 began in 2009, like football’s UEFA Champions League, allowing top teams from India, Australia and South Africa to compete. But it ended after six seasons (2009-2014) because not many fans came to watch and sponsors lost interest. Gould said the tournament was ahead of its time and couldn’t meet commercial expectations.

Now, with football’s FIFA Club World Cup starting this month in the US and rugby launching its own Club World Cup in 2028, cricket is planning a similar tournament, possibly called the World Club Championship.

However, there are challenges. International and franchise cricket run almost all year, and most IPL and Women’s IPL teams already play in other countries’ leagues. Their agreement will be important for the new tournament to work. Finding the right time for it will not be easy.

Global Super League: A Small Step Forward

In 2024, the Global Super League (GSL) was held in Guyana with five teams from different countries. Bangladesh’s Rangpur Riders won the first tournament. The second edition will take place from July 10 to 18, 2025, again in Guyana. The teams playing will be the Rangpur Riders, Dubai Capitals (champions of UAE’s International League T20), Hobart Hurricanes (winners of Australia’s Big Bash League), Central Stags (New Zealand’s Super Smash champions), and the Guyana Amazon Warriors from the Caribbean Premier League, who will host the event.

Cricket’s Club World Cup may soon follow football and rugby, but it will need good timing, strong partnerships and fan support to succeed.