Lanka Premier League
Sri Lanka's professional T20 franchise competition, launched in 2020 and now in its sixth season. Five city-based franchises compete each year — though the sponsors and names above their heads rarely stay still for long.
About the league
The Lanka Premier League was established by Sri Lanka Cricket in 2020 as the country's first professional T20 franchise competition. Five teams, each carrying the name of a Sri Lankan city, compete for the title every season.
The tournament runs on a double round-robin format: every team plays each of the other four twice in the league stage. The top four finishers then move into a playoff bracket — Qualifier 1, an Eliminator, Qualifier 2, and finally the Final — which decides the champion.
Six seasons have been played since the league's launch. The 2025 edition was postponed to make way for venue upgrades ahead of the T20 World Cup, so the competition returned in July–August 2026 for its sixth season.
The five franchises
Every team plays under a Sri Lankan city banner. What sits above the city name has changed often, as ownership and sponsorship have shifted season to season.
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Colombo Kaps
Colombo Kings → Colombo Stars → Colombo Strikers → Colombo Kaps
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Kandy Royals
Kandy Tuskers → Kandy Warriors → B-Love Kandy → Kandy Falcons → Kandy Royals
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Galle Gallants
Galle Gladiators → Galle Marvels → Galle Gallants
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Dambulla Sixers
Dambulla Viiking → Dambulla Giants → Dambulla Aura → Dambulla Thunders → Dambulla Sixers
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Jaffna Kings
Jaffna Stallions → Jaffna Kings
Champions, season by season
Jaffna dominated the league's first four years before the title finally moved elsewhere.
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2020
Jaffna Stallions
Beat Galle Gladiators in the league's first-ever final.
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2021
Jaffna Kings
Defeated Galle Gladiators again to make it back-to-back titles.
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2022
Jaffna Kings
A third straight trophy, this time past Colombo Stars.
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2023
B-Love Kandy
Broke Jaffna's run, beating Dambulla Aura for a maiden title.
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2024
Jaffna Kings
Reclaimed the trophy with a fourth title, defeating Galle Marvels.
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2025
No season held.
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2026
Galle Gallants
Won their first title, beating defending champions Jaffna Kings.
2026 season: standings & stats
Final league-stage table before the playoffs and final.
| Pos | Team | M | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jaffna Kings | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 11 | +0.385 |
| 2 | Galle Gallants | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 10 | +0.604 |
| 3 | Colombo Kaps | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 8 | +0.108 |
| 4 | Kandy Royals | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6 | −0.567 |
| 5 | Dambulla Sixers | 8 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 5 | −0.565 |
Playoffs
- Qualifier 1 Jaffna Kings beat Galle Gallants by 14 runs
- Eliminator Colombo Kaps beat Kandy Royals by 68 runs
- Qualifier 2 Galle Gallants beat Colombo Kaps by 6 wickets
- Final Galle Gallants beat Jaffna Kings by 5 wickets
Season honours
- Most valuable player Charith Asalanka — Galle Gallants
- Leading run-scorer Kamil Mishara — Jaffna Kings, 411 runs