Top News

There is now a good chance that the Melbourne Stars and Melbourne Renegades will still be involved in the Big Bash League (BBL) for at least one more year after recent uncertainty surrounded the two clubs.

The issue first became news early in the month when Cricket Victoria announced that they would be integrating the operations of the two Melbourne based teams. This announcement led to concern from players fans and other officials especially after there was a lack of formal confirmation from Cricket Australia regarding a new ownership model for the BBL.

However things seem to have taken a turn and now both teams look likely to operate individually during the 2026-27 BBL season with discussions still to be held regarding privatisation and management of the league.

On Monday state cricket chairs voted "in principle" to accept a hybrid privatisation model. State cricket boards would be able to chose whether to sell stakes in their BBL clubs.

While this vote is a huge step forward several other things need to be settled before a new ownership structure can be put in place.

Also Read | Former Sri Lanka Captain Offers Million-Dollar Advice To Vaibhav Sooryavanshi - Watch

Crucially the support of the Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) is needed and the player union is calling for significant changes before signing off any privatisation deals. ACA chief executive Paul Marsh told his players last week that he will not be supporting the current proposal. Player salary and revenue share are expected to be the most important factors for discussion.

Many Australian domestic players are annoyed that a large percentage of overseas stars are given bigger contract value. Players are also expecting the revenue share from cricket to increase from 27.5 percent to 30 percent under the current Memorandum of Understanding. Cricket Australia is said to not be willing to allow for such an increase but will continue negotiations with players over the coming weeks.

Cricket Victoria has begun preparing for future re-branding, with trademark applications submitted for names such as Rangers Blazers and Magic. Despite these preparations Melbourne Stars is now likely to feature at the 2026-27 BBL, under its existing brand name. Melbourne Renegades will also likely compete during the 2026-27 season, under a temporary administration which will be headed up by ex Stars general manager Max Abbott and backed by Cricket Victoria.

Some cricket officials are optimistic a final deal can be made in the next month. This will then see clubs tested for their value on the market as soon as October. The ACA is also expecting to speak with players from both clubs to clear up issues arising from Cricket Victorias' merger announcement and advise them prior to the 2026-27 season.