Afghanistan Premier League (2026)

Afghanistan Premier League
Tournament logo
Tournament logo
CountriesAfghanistan
AdministratorAfghanistan Cricket Board
FormatTwenty20
First edition2026–27
Next edition2027
Tournament formatDouble round-robin and Knockout
Number of teams5
Websiteapl-t20.com
2026–27

The Afghanistan Premier League is a Twenty20 franchise cricket tournament run by the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB). Founded in 2025, and first contested during the 2026 season. It is contested by five teams based in cities around the country.

History

The 2026 Afghanistan Premier League marked the revival of the Afghanistan Premier League after an eight-year hiatus. The tournament had previously been held only once in 2018 before being discontinued because of commercial disputes, contractual issues, and concerns surrounding the league's administration. Following several years of uncertainty, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) announced in December 2025 that the league would return as a five-team franchise Twenty20 competition, with matches scheduled to be played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

In August 2026, the five represented cities were announced. On 26 August, the APL announced the first three franchise owners, Akcel United Kabul, Balkh Zwanan and Kandahar Warriors.

The Player Draft will be held on 27 September 2026. The Player Registration Window Extended Until October 5, the player draft will be held on 24 October in United Arab Emirates. The first edition held on 27 December 2026.

On 23 October 2026, the Afghanistan Cricket Board announced that the captains and coaches draft for the five participating franchises would be held on 24 October in the United Arab Emirates. The franchises would select their captains, head coaches from shortlisted candidates, while the ACB would appoint assistant coaches and other coaching staff. On 25 October, ACB confirmed the captains, head coaches and mentors of all five participating franchises. The ACB also confirmed that the players draft had been scheduled for 3 November 2026 in Dubai. On 3 November 2026, the Players' Draft for the tournament was held at Le Méridien Dubai Hotel & Conference Centre in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Kandahar Warriors selected Pakistani fast bowler Muhammad Amir as the first pick of the draft. Other notable players selected in the Platinum category included Moeen Ali, Alex Hales, Johnson Charles and Wanindu Hasaranga. The five franchises completed their squads over 18 rounds, selecting a total of 90 players from a draft pool of 462.

Organisation

The five teams play each other twice in the group stages of the competition before the top four teams move to the playoffs stage.

Trophy

The trophy was unveiled in August 2026.

Teams

Current

In August 2026, the five represented cities were announced. On 26 August, the APL announced the first three franchise owners, Akcel United Kabul, Kandahar Warriors, and Balkh Zwanan. On 25 October, APL confirmed the captains and head coaches of all five participating franchises. On November, Nangarhar Cosmic was announced as one of the franchises.

Afghanistan Premier League (2026) (Afghanistan)
Team City Debut Captain Head coach Owner(s)
Akcel United Kabul Kabul 2026 Azmatullah Omarzai Shane McDermott
Team Balkh Balkh Ibrahim Zadran Mickey Arthur
Kandahar Warriors Kandahar Rashid Khan Ravi Bopara
Nangarhar Cosmic Nangarhar Rahmat Shah Toby Radford
Team Paktia Paktia Rahmanullah Gurbaz Azhar Mahmood

Tournament results

Season Final Player of the series
Winner Result Runners-up Venue
2026

Team performances

Seasons

Teams
 2026
Akcel United Kabul
Team Balkh
Kandahar Warriors
Nangarhar Cosmic
Team Paktia

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Afghanistan Premier League T20 Unveils Inaugural Franchises, Logos, and the 'Koh-E-Zafar' Trophy Ahead of Historic Season". APL T20. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  2. ↑ "Afghanistan board announces a five-team franchise-based T20 league". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  3. 1 2 "ACB confirms return of Afghanistan Premier League from 2026". Daily Sun. 21 December 2025. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  4. ↑ "Relaunched Afghanistan Premier League to start on December 27". Cricinfo. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  5. ↑ "Five-team Afghanistan Premier League to begin on December 27". Cricbuzz. Retrieved 28 August 2026.
  6. 1 2 "Afghanistan's premier league set to relaunch with five teams in 2026". Daryo. 23 December 2025. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  7. ↑ "ACB confident of relaunching APL in 2025". Cricbuzz. Retrieved 12 June 2024.
  8. ↑ "Afghanistan's moment: inside the Dubai launch that reset the APL's ambitions". cricexec.com. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  9. ↑ "ACB Signs Long-Term Commercial Partnership for the Afghanistan Premier League (APL T20)". APL T20. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  10. ↑ "Afghanistan Cricket Board Opens Franchise Acquisition Process for APL T20 2026". APL T20. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  11. ↑ "Three franchises sold in Afghanistan Premier League T20". Cricbuzz. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  12. ↑ "APLT20 Reaches Major Milestone with Three Franchises Sold". acb.af. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  13. ↑ "Three franchises sold as Afghanistan Premier League unveil official trophy". Gulf news. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  14. ↑ "Player Registrations Underway for 2026 Afghanistan Premier League T20 Player Draft". Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  15. ↑ "APL Player Registration Window Extended Until October 5". Retrieved 28 September 2026.
  16. ↑ "Afghanistan Premier League Captains and Coaches Draft Scheduled for October 24". Afghanistan Cricket Board. 23 October 2026. Retrieved 24 October 2026.
  17. ↑ "APL Leaders' Draft Confirms Captains and Head Coaches for All Five Franchises". Afghanistan Premier League. 25 October 2026. Retrieved 25 October 2026.
  18. ↑ "Pick Order Confirmed for 2026 Afghanistan Premier League T20 Player Draft Following Inaugural APL Huddle". Cricinfo. Retrieved 3 November 2026.
  19. ↑ "APLT20 Player Draft 2026 Concludes in Dubai as Five Franchises Finalize Their Squads". acb.af. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
  20. ↑ "Moeen, Hales lead England contingent for inaugural Afghanistan Premier League". Cricinfo. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
  21. ↑ "APL T20 Player Draft 2026 Concludes: Global Stars Join Afghanistan's Top Talent Across Five Squads". Afghanistan Premier League. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
  22. ↑ "APL T20 unveils Koh-i-Zafar trophy as 3 franchises sold". Cricinfo. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  23. ↑ "Afghanistan Premier League T20 Reveals First Three Teams And New 'Koh-E-Zafar' Trophy". NDTV. Retrieved 26 October 2026.
  24. ↑ "Three franchises sold in Afghanistan Premier League T20". Cricbuzz. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  25. ↑ "APL Leaders' Draft Confirms Captains and Head Coaches for All Five Franchises". Apl-t20. Retrieved 25 October 2026.
  26. ↑ "Irfan, Boucher, Waqar among support staff for inaugural Afghanistan Premier League". Cricinfo. Retrieved 2 November 2026.