The European T20 Premier League began on Wednesday, August 26, 2026, with Rotterdam Dockers taking on Amsterdam Flames in the opening match at Voorburg Cricket Club in the Netherlands. The inaugural season runs from August 26 to September 20, 2026, featuring six teams competing across 30 league matches before the final at Malahide Cricket Club in Ireland.
Abhishek Bachchan, co-founder and co-owner of ETPL alongside Saurav Banerjee, Priyanka Kaul and Dhiraj Malhotra of Rules Global, spoke during JioHotstar commentary on the opening day about the league’s development and vision. The league is a joint venture between Cricket Ireland and Rules Global, developed in partnership with Cricket Ireland, Cricket Scotland and the Royal Dutch Cricket Association.
Bachchan reflected on the three-year journey to establish the league and the importance of maintaining credibility and competitive standards. Speaking on JioHotstar, he emphasised the role of belief and teamwork in bringing the concept to life, as well as the backing received from international cricket authorities.
“Nothing worth doing is going to be easy. But you have to believe in your dream, and you have to believe in the reasons why you started it. It’s been three years since the inception of this seed of an idea, and my eternal thanks to the team that’s worked with me, to my co-founders, and to the ICC for the kind of faith they’ve bestowed in us. We were very, very concerned about the fact that we wanted to put across a very competitive and very credible league,” Bachchan said on JioHotstar.
“I’d like to believe that we’ve made a good and auspicious start. It’s wonderful to be here. It’s a beautiful ground, the crowd has been great, and I can’t wait to see all the rest of the teams perform,” he added.
Three years of development and ICC support
The league features six teams: Amsterdam Flames, Rotterdam Dockers, Belfast Wolves, Dublin Guardians, Edinburgh Castle Rockers and Glasgow Cosmic. Team ownership includes cricket legends Steve Waugh, Rahul Dravid, Faf du Plessis and Jonty Rhodes, alongside Glenn Maxwell. The inaugural season has attracted international players including Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Steve Smith, Mitchell Marsh, David Miller, Trent Boult and Liam Livingstone.
Bachchan explained his motivation for establishing the league in Europe, drawing on his extensive experience in sports ownership across multiple disciplines in India. He emphasised the desire to create a platform where local cricketers could compete alongside world-class talent and develop their skills at the highest level.
“I’m a huge cricket fan, most Indians are. We all love cricket. I’ve been involved in sport for a very, very long time and always wanted to do something in cricket. But my desire was to be able to do it in a place where we could make a difference, where we could bring about some change, and where we could contribute to the local cricketing talent and give them an opportunity and a platform to play against world-class players. I think that’s where the idea came from, and three years later, we are here, giving these younger lads and the local lads the opportunity to enjoy T20 cricket with the best in the world,” he further noted.
Bringing world-class cricket to local talent
Following the opening match, Bachchan expressed relief and satisfaction with the league’s initial reception and the atmosphere created on the first day. He noted the significance of seeing the inaugural fixture unfold as planned and the positive response from audiences both in Europe and back home in India.
“I’m pleased. I’m relieved. We were relieved after the first ball went for runs,” the actor said.
“Seeing the atmosphere, that’s exactly what we dreamt of, to bring competitive, world-class cricket to Europe, and here we are on the first day. Proof of concept, here we are, the first ball has been bowled, and everybody’s very, very happy, back home and over here as well. Upward and onwards, we hope to build from this” he added.
Credibility through established ownership
Bachchan highlighted the role of team ownership in establishing credibility for the new league and generating global interest. He observed that the involvement of established cricket figures had generated significant viewership worldwide and lent weight to the venture’s legitimacy and quality.
“There is reasonable interest. I didn’t think people would have this kind of interest, and it’s nice to know that people are tuning in. We’re being shown worldwide, and it’s wonderful. When you see the kind of ownership that’s there, with Steve Waugh, Rahul Dravid, Glenn Maxwell and Jonty Rhodes, there’s a certain amount of credibility,” he concluded.
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