What is ETPL? Rahul Dravid and Chris Gayle to co-own team in Abhishek Bachchan-led T20 league

A new cricket league is all set to step into the world franchise T20 league this summer. The newly formed league is being called the European T20 Premier League (ETPL) and it will comprise six teams, based out of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands.

According to reports, "Universe Boss" and legendary former West Indies and Royal Challengers Bengaluru batter Chris Gayle is all set to co-own a franchise in the league.

After Gayle came on board, Indian cricket legend Rahul Dravid, also joined the bandwagon as he was named the co-owner of the Dublin Guardians franchise.

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The ETPL, conceived in 2025, is partly owned by Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan, alongside Rules Sport Tech, a private Indian company.

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What is ETPL?

The concept of conducting a European T20 competition was first conceived by the cricket boards of Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands in 2019, although the idea had to be postponed due to the pandemic.

In 2025, the idea was revived by the three national boards and it was decided that the league would be privately funded. It was decided that the league would be partly owned by actor Abhishek Bachchan.

Initially, the competition was supposed to be held in the summer of 2025 but later it was postponed to 2026.

How many teams will participate in ETPL 2026?

As of now, it has been decided that six franchises will take part in the inaugural edition of the competition. Each franchise was sold for INR 1,39,63,68,000 (£11.1m, $15m)