The International Cricket Council (ICC) has put plans for a World Club Championship and other new multilateral competitions on hold until at least 2031 after India, England and Australia opposed adding more events to an already congested calendar, according to an exclusive report by The Guardian’s Matt Hughes.
The setback comes at a significant commercial moment for the governing body. With the ICC preparing for the possibility of lower broadcast income in its next rights cycle, it has been examining ways to expand its competition portfolio and generate additional revenue.
That ambition has collided with the priorities of three boards whose bilateral series and domestic competitions occupy some of cricket’s most valuable calendar space.
Big Three resistance blocks ICC expansion
The ICC had explored multiple additions to the existing schedule, including a global competition for leading domestic clubs and four-team T20 tournaments involving international sides.
India, England and Australia maintained that additional competitions could not simply be inserted into the schedule. Their position was that space would have to come from reducing the ICC’s existing tournament programme, potentially affecting events such as World Cups or the Champions Trophy. No such reduction has been under consideration.
The disagreement came into focus during a cricket operations workshop in Dubai last week, following months of informal discussions between the governing body and its members. No additional competition emerged from the meeting for inclusion in the 2027-31 Future Tours Programme (FTP).
Smaller cricket nations showed greater interest in expanding the multilateral calendar, but the opposition of the three largest boards has prevented those ideas from advancing into the next cycle.
Broadcast outlook adds urgency for ICC
Behind the tournament discussions is a broader question over the ICC’s future commercial model.
India is by far cricket’s largest market, accounting for about 70% of the sport’s global revenue. The ICC is particularly dependent on the country for broadcast income, making the value of its next Indian media-rights agreement important to its financial outlook.
Its current Indian rights package was acquired by Disney Star for US$3.1 billion for the 2024-27 period. Since that agreement was struck, Disney Star and Viacom18 have combined to form JioStar, changing the competitive landscape ahead of the next sale.
The scale of the ICC’s exposure to India is illustrated by its overall rights portfolio. Its broadcast agreements are sold across 11 territories and generate US$3.5 billion globally, with the Indian contract contributing the overwhelming majority of that total.
The ICC’s next rights cycle will run from 2028 through 2032, encompassing two T20 World Cups as well as the 2029 Champions Trophy and 2031 ODI World Cup.
Concerns that future rights could be worth significantly less prompted the ICC to commission a strategic review from consulting firm McKinsey. Its full report is scheduled to go before members at the organisation’s quarterly meeting in Bali next month.
Global club cricket must wait
One of the concepts under consideration would have brought leading domestic teams together in an international club competition, reviving a model previously attempted through the Champions League Twenty20 (CLT20).
The CLT20 operated from 2009 until 2014 and featured leading sides from domestic T20 competitions around the world. It was ultimately discontinued after struggling to deliver sufficient audiences and commercial returns while generating financial losses.
The franchise environment has expanded considerably in the years since, with established T20 competitions now occupying an increasingly prominent place in the sport.
A revived global club concept would have provided the ICC with another competition in a cricket economy where domestic franchise leagues generate substantial revenues outside its own tournament programme. But any such event would require calendar space that the major boards are unwilling to provide under the present structure.
As a result, a global club championship is now off the table for the forthcoming FTP period rather than being incorporated alongside existing ICC and bilateral commitments.
Existing calendar wins out through 2031
The practical consequence of the dispute is that the 2027-31 FTP is set to look much like the current international cycle.
England, Australia and India have already mapped out their major bilateral commitments involving one another through 2031. England are due to host the Ashes next summer before travelling to Australia in 2029-30, while a five-Test tour of India is scheduled for early 2028. India are then set to visit England in 2029.
Those series sit alongside ICC tournaments, domestic franchise competitions and other bilateral commitments, illustrating the competition for available windows that underpins the disagreement over adding further events.
One potential expansion remains alive, but it involves an existing ICC competition rather than creating another tournament. The World Test Championship could grow from nine to 12 teams, bringing Afghanistan, Ireland and Zimbabwe into the competition from the next cycle.
The ICC has yet to provide members with final plans for that change, while the broader FTP is expected to be settled at next month’s Bali meeting.
For now, the outcome leaves the ICC facing its commercial challenge without the additional competitions it had been exploring. Its next international cycle is instead set to preserve the established tournament and bilateral framework, pushing any attempt to create a new global club championship beyond 2031.
