The Bangladesh Premier League is the premier T20 league event of Bangladesh. It is managed by the Bangladesh Cricket Board since 2012. The tournament is played between franchise teams, each representing seven cities of the country. Till date, eight franchise teams have been a part of the tournament.
Chattogram Challengers, Comilla Victorians, Durdanto Dhaka, Fortune Barishal, Khulna Tigers, Rangpur Riders, Sylhet Strikers are the seven active teams. Rajshahi Royals are a defunct team that did not play after the 2019-20 edition.
Teams are made based on a draft season unlike some other leagues that feature an auction. Franchises choose new players through an annual draft. Teams can choose to retain and trade players, and also sign other players outside the draft.
Every squad of a franchise team can have a minimum of ten and a maximum of fourteen local players. Out of these, one player has to be recruited directly before the draft is released. The remaining spots in the squad can be filled by overseas players. An overseas player who has retired internationally can play the Bangladesh Premier League provided they have obtained a No Objection Certificate from their national cricket board.
The Bangladesh Premier League is played in a double round-robin format. After every team plays the other twice, the top four teams progress to the playoffs. Teams positioned first and second contest the first qualifier. The winner of this match progresses to the final. Teams placed third and fourth play the eliminator. The winner of this match plays the second qualifier against the loser of the first qualifier. Finally, the winner of this match plays the final against the winner of the first qualifier.
The most successful team in the Bangladesh Premier League is Comilla Victorians who has won four titles. The next best team is Dhaka Dominators, who has won the tournament thrice. As of 2023, Tamim Iqbal is the leading run scorer with 2930 runs, whereas Shakib Al Hasan is the most successful bowler with 132 wickets. The winning side of the Bangladesh Premier League bags a prize money of approximately INR 6.20 crores.
