The 12th season of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) is once again scheduled to coincide with the period of the Indian Premier League (IPL). According to information, PSL 2027 will take place from March 18 to May 2. Thus, this is the third consecutive year that the dates of the T20 league in Pakistan overlap with the IPL dates.
PSL started in 2016 and was held in February-March until 2024. However, due to ICC tournaments, starting from 2025, it had to move its schedule to April-May. This change was caused by the World Cup in Pakistan in 2025 and the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka in 2026.
According to Cricinfo, at a board meeting last month, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and franchises considered holding PSL 12 in January-February. Nevertheless, Walee Technologies, which holds media content rights until 2029, is dissatisfied with the current schedule. The company claims that holding the tournament after Ramadan negatively affects broadcasting revenues.
In the company's view, most advertisers spend their marketing and television budgets during Ramadan. Consequently, the chances of broadcasters receiving advertising revenue decrease when PSL is held after this period. The previous two seasons were also held after Ramadan, and PSL 2027 is likely to follow this schedule, as Ramadan in 2027 is expected in early February to early March.
Furthermore, the January-February timeframe was deemed logistically challenging. Three out of four traditional PSL venues are in Punjab: Lahore, Multan, and Rawalpindi. In January-February, there could be serious visibility issues there due to severe cold and dense fog. Moreover, the most important and concluding stage of the tournament in this window falls during Ramadan, which happened in 2024.
No consensus on the time slot was reached at the board meeting. Following this, the PCB requested preferences from all eight franchises via email. Most franchises voted for the March-May window.
The press release issued by the PCB does not mention specific venues. Since 2020, PSL has been held entirely in Pakistan; previously, the tournament was also held in the UAE along with Pakistan. The main venues remain Karachi, Lahore, Multan, and Rawalpindi. Two new venues, Fazleabad and Peshawar, were added last year. However, following the Middle East crisis and government fuel-saving measures, PSL 11 was limited only to Lahore and Karachi, and all matches except the final were played at empty stadiums.
