THE INAUGURAL SEASON of the AED 370,000 Premier Champions League (PCL) will be held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Mumbai, India during January-February 2018, where 24 teams each in both cities will battle for entry into the Grand Finale to be crowned the PCL 2018 Grand Champion.
The PCL, which will be held at Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR) in Dubai, is a box cricket tournament, a sports property conceptualised and owned by Sports & Entertainment Development LLP, the company which runs The Fan Garage, a well-known sports fans-focused brand. The Dubai edition of the PCL is being organised by B&B Events.
PCL will offer the highest-ever prize money in this category of cricket leagues with the Dubai Champion winning AED 100,000 and the Runner-Up taking home AED 50,000. The Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the tournament will be richer by AED 30,000, while the Best Batsman and Bowler will be awarded AED 10,000 each.
The league phase of PCL will see 6 teams each in four groups, with each team playing all other teams in the group once. The top two teams from each group will move into the quarter-finals, which will be played on a knockout basis.
The four semi-finalists will get an opportunity to be mentored by an internationally renowned cricketer. The winner of the Dubai and Mumbai editions will clash with each other in the Grand Finale to be held in Dubai to determine the first title winner of PCL.
The Dubai champion will then compete with the Mumbai champion in the Grand Finale to determine the Grand Champion for PCL 2018. The PCL 2018 Grand Champion will get an additional AED 50,000 in prize money.
Announcing the launch of the Premier Champions League (PCL) 2018, Mr. C.P. Thomas, Co-Founder, Sports & Entertainment Development LLP, said: “We are thrilled to announce the launch of the inaugural edition of Premier Champions League (PCL) 2018 in Dubai. The PCL will be a multi-city annual tournament. The 2018 season will be held in Dubai and Mumbai, and will be conducted in more cities across different cricket-playing markets during the coming seasons.”
“PCL will provide the many clubs and teams that play the sport an opportunity to contest at a very high level and compete for the title of Grand Champion across cities. The high amount of prize money will provide the impetus for players to perform at their best and showcase their skills with an aim to help their team reach the pinnacle of success. We look forward to an exhilarating season of top quality cricket,” Mr. Thomas added.
Each team in PCL will consist of 12 players and a support staff of maximum 5 members. Each team will be allowed to field 8 players in the match.
DUBAI PCL PRIZE MONEY
Dubai Champion: AED 100,000
Dubai Runner-Up: AED 50,000
Most Valuable Player: AED 30,000
Best Batsman: AED 10,000
Best Bowler: AED 10,000
GRAND FINALE Champion: Additional AED 50,000
MUMBAI PCL PRIZE MONEY
Mumbai Champion: INR 11,00,000
Mumbai Runner-Up: INR 500,000
Most Valuable Player: INR 300,000
Best Batsman: INR 100,000
Best Bowler: INR 100,000
GRAND FINALE Champion: Additional INR 875,000