With Jamaica set to make its grand return to the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) this summer, CPL Chief Executive Officer Pete Russell insists the island remains central to the tournament’s success and expects a fruitful long-term partnership with the new owners and government.

The Jamaican franchise, now called the Jamaica Kingsmen, will compete in the 2026 staging of the region’s premier Twenty20 (T20) competition for the first time since 2023 following the takeover of the United States-based Kingsmen Sports Enterprise, owned by Fawad Sarwar.

The Kingsmen currently owns other franchises around the world including in the Pakistan Super League and United States Minor League Cricket.

While there was heavy interest in the Jamaican franchise including from IPL ownership groups, Russell believes the Kingsmen was the ideal partner.

“It comes down to the fact they [Kingsmen] had the same vision as us,” he said. “They wanted to invest in the men’s game, they wanted to invest in the women’s game and I think having a women’s team here was a big part of that.”

“But it’s not just about the six weeks of the tournament, it’s what happens outside of that. So their commitment to invest, alongside what the Government or the Jamaica Cricket Association are doing, was a major contributing factor and all I’ve seen from the dialogue I’ve had with them is their commitment to the game and you could see from his [Sarwar] enthusiasm when he’s come down here, he knows what it means to Jamaica and he respects that and I think that’s an important part of the equation.”

Previous owner of the then Tallawahs franchise Kris Persaud sold the franchise back to the CPL after citing financial challenges and lack of government support. He later bought the franchise rights of Antigua and Barbuda and has competed as the Falcons in 2024 and 2025.

However, Russell believes all stakeholders, including government, have learnt their lessons and is committed to making Jamaica a permanent hub for CPL.

“I think the last franchise was a bit of a false start for everyone,” he said. “Yes, they won a couple of titles, which was great but I think what we wanted to see was to have an ownership partner who would help develop the game here and that was a huge part of the agenda when we spoke to the sports minister.”

“That’s exactly what the Kingsmen group brings, they’ve shown that they’ve done it elsewhere and as you can see, he [the Kingsmen owner] is very excited about what he can deliver and contribute to Jamaican cricket.”

As the Jamaica Observer revealed last month, Sabina Park, for the first time since 2019, is to host four matches in August.

The Kingsmen are to welcome Barbados Royals on August 11, Guyana Amazon Warriors on August 13, defending champions Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) on August 15, and St Kitts and Nevis Patriots on August 18.

Russell has hailed Jamaica’s return as a host and expects it to deliver an immediate impact.

“I think everyone was waiting for it to happen, I think the fans here are looking forward to it. Seven years without games here is too long, so I think for the tournament it’s absolutely the right time,” he said.

“We’re going to make sure it’s an evening everyone wants to be at — you want it to be the hottest ticket in town, hence why we’ve got the Warriors and TKR, who are ultimately the other two big teams in the tournament, playing next to each other. We’re expecting a lot, we’re expecting a lot of ourselves, we make sure it is the biggest party in sport, that takes a lot of organising but we deliver everywhere else and I’m sure we’ll deliver here as well.”

The squad for the Kingsmen is set to be finalised in the June during the draft with the
Observer reporting in March that Andre Russell, Rovman Powell, and Brandon King among the main targets.

A view of Sabina Park in Kingston, JamaicaPhoto: CPL via Getty Images

RUSSELLL… they’ve shown that they’ve done it elsewhere and as you can see, he [the Kingsmen owner] is very excited about what he can deliver and contribute to Jamaican cricket Photo: CPL

Jamaica Tallawahs players celebrate the dismissal of Kyle Mayers of Barbados Royals during the Men’s Caribbean Premier League final at Providence Stadium in Guyana on September 30, 2022. Photo: CPL via Getty Images