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Auctioneer Wasim Akram confirms new PSL teams: Owners, prices and cities locked

Mayank

Wasim Akram was the auctioneer in PSL new teams auction [Source: dhillow_/X.com]Wasim Akram was the auctioneer in PSL new teams auction [Source: dhillow_/X.com]

The Pakistan Cricket Board concluded the process of adding two new teams to the Pakistan Super League from 2026 by conducting an auction hosted by the legendary Wasim Akram. As announced in the lead-up to the event, there were six cities and ten bidders in contention, and the process went according to the plan, with two new cities confirmed.

Contrary to the earlier baseless reports, claiming Gilgit and Faisalabad were confirmed cities for the new franchises, Sialkot and Hyderabad are set to have a franchises each of their own from PSL 11 onwards. The teams were swooped in for grand amounts by Oz Developers and FKS Group, respectively, with PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi in attendance.

New PSL team cities, owners and franchises confirmed

In the team auction that took place at the Jinnah Convention Centre in Islamabad on Thursday, the interested buyers went berserk in the bid wars, but with only two spots available, FKS Group managed to get their hands on a Hyderabad-based franchise, which will be named in due time, while OZ Developers got a team based in Sialkot.

Team Hyderabad was sold for 1,750,000,000 PKR (175 crore) to FKS Group, while the valuation for Team Sialkot went till 1,850,000,000 PKR (175 crore), with Lahore's real estate giant OZ Developers getting the winning bid.

Following are the PSL franchise fees for the next 10 years:

  • $66.1 Million – Sialkot
  • $62.5 Million – Hyderabad
  • $23.9 Million – Lahore
  • $22.9 Million – Karachi
  • $17.5 Million – Peshawar
  • $17.1 Million – Islamabad
  • $12.1 Million – Quetta

Wasim Akram's theatrics as an auctioneer

While the marquee event is set to determine the long-term future of the league, which is heading into its second decade since inception in 2016, legendary left-arm fast bowler Wasim Akram was made the face of this historic occasion for the competition and was also handed the responsibility to be the auctioneer.

Throughout the evening, several clips of the former cricketer went viral, where he was een having fun while taking care of the proceedings in his own way. Having done so much for Pakistan cricket since his playing days, it was a strategic move from the PCB to take help from Akram to gain traction and have credibility among the interested bidders, and as things stand, it turned out well for them.

A big step for Pakistan cricket's future

This is the second time that PCB has decided to expand the number of teams in the competition. The last time was in 2018, just after seasons after the first season, Multan Sultans became the sixth team introduced to the tournament, and the league grew at a steady pace.

An eight-team league is now a huge step from the board on several fronts, as they now aim to improve the reputation of the league to attract better and marquee foreign stars, considering their dates clash with the IPL. The added teams will also present opportunities to more local talent, which will eventually help the national team get better after the constant disappointment over the past few years.

Up next, all 8 teams will now look to create a strong player pool to contest for the title in a bigger and better tournament starting in the summer. Reportedly, the player draft is expected to happen on January 21, with the registration window for overseas players already open.