PCB to continue endeavours for tax relief in PSL

LAHORE: Despite getting no response from the government on its strenuous efforts to get relief in taxes on the Pakistan Super League accounts, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and all six franchises of the league have decided to continue their endeavours in this regard.

The decision was taken during the sixth PSL governing council meeting, which was held here at the National Cricket Academy on Monday. The meeting was attended by all the franchises.

While the franchises are concerned over suffering financial losses in all the previous three editions of PSL, the PCB, on the other hand, is the claiming to have of earned profit from the league.

“While noting the importance of obtaining tax relief from the government to manage cash flows for the franchisees, the governing council reiterated its commitment to engage with relevant authorities in the coming days,” a press release issued after Monday’s meeting stated.

The PCB, around two months ago, had held meetings with federal finance minister and Punjab chief minister to get relief from the taxes of federal and provincial governments but failed to get any breakthrough.

“The PCB and [the] franchise representatives engaged in constructive discussions covering a wide variety of aspects related to the league,” the press release added.

“The governing council noted the historic commercial rights deals that have seen a 192% increase in the title sponsorship and 358% increase in media rights. The participants noted that, as a result of these deals, the PCB and the franchisees have collectively exceeded valuations shared by independent global consultants from Lagardere.

“Franchise representatives were provided with a comprehensive projection of revenues for HBL PSL 2019. The governing council noted that, in line with the original business model of the tournament, the share of each franchisee had increased substantially,” the release stated.

“The governing council reviewed the ticketing strategy for PSL 2019 in detail. It was noted that the PCB has put in place elaborate plans to facilitate fans across the five venues in the UAE and Pakistan. This includes the provision of shuttle services across different stadia in a bid to improve access for fans.

“Franchise representatives and PCB officials exchanged ideas on collaborating for game development initiatives. PCB chairman reiterated the Board’s commitment to bring more PSL matches to Pakistan in the coming years.

“Franchise representatives and PCB participants were also informed of the plans to screen PSL matches for fans in Pakistan with the support of local authorities,” the press release concluded.