Lahore: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Thursday rejected media reports claiming it had finalised names for two new Pakistan Super League (PSL) teams.
The board said it has not made any decision yet and that the winning bidders will choose the team names.
According to the PCB, franchise owners will pick a name from the list of shortlisted cities. The six options remain Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Hyderabad, Sialkot, Muzaffarabad and Gilgit.
The board welcomed growing interest from investors seeking rights to the new teams. PSL CEO Salman Naseer earlier announced that the league would hold an auction before the 11th edition, allowing bidders to select their preferred city from the list.
The PCB also said it advertised public tenders for the new franchises worldwide on November 15, 2025. Interested parties have until December 15, 2025, at 11:00am to submit their proposals.
Earlier reports of Franchise Announcement & Issue of Multan Sultans
According to some media reports Gilgit and Faisalabad two new franchises were to join the tournament in its 11th edition which the PCB negated today. However, according to reports bids from Rawalpindi, Muzaffarabad and Hyderabad fell short, leaving the three cities out of contention.
Meanwhile, uncertainty surrounds Multan Sultans as the league has yet to resolve the team’s ownership issues, and officials said the league may place the franchise up for bidding again ahead of the new season. In response, the Sultans criticized the Pakistan Cricket Board’s handling of owner Ali Tareen’s case, calling the board’s stance “short-sighted” and alleging that the PCB asked Tareen to retract his recent criticism and issue a public apology.
The team said Tareen has invested billions of rupees in the franchise, absorbed more than PKR 7 billion in losses and set up academies that expanded opportunities for young players across the country.
