Player union wants ‘basic protections’ to ensure franchise leagues pay players on time

Cricket’s global player union has called for the introduction of “basic global protections” to ensure franchise leagues pay players on time. The World Cricketers’ Association (WCA) say that long-standing issues around late payments are “not getting better” but fear that cricket is incapable of “solving transnational issues” under its current structure.

Insiders say that the issue has spiralled out of control of late, with a proliferation of new leagues in recent years. The WCA launched a ‘leagues hub’ last year which details 53 men’s and women’s leagues, including several which do not have ICC approval. Of those, the WCA say they have received reports of late or non-payment issues in 17.

Tom Moffat, the WCA’s chief executive, told ESPNcricinfo: “Late and non-payment is a persistent issue in domestic leagues globally, and the issue is not getting better. We have advocated for a long time for some basic global protections that could assist the players, and the game, to address this issue.”

The WCA believes the ICC should introduce a global arbitration body – similar to FIFA’s Dispute Resolution Chamber in football – to adjudicate in cases where players are chasing outstanding payments. The ICC’s stance is that issues involving domestic leagues are a matter for member boards, and do not fall under their jurisdiction.

“In any league that is officially sanctioned, players should have confidence that their contracts have some basic protections and minimum standards in them,” Moffat said. “These include standards around payment terms, and that there is a fit-for-purpose enforcement mechanism, such as a global arbitration body, to address breaches.

“We’ve assisted a number of players globally to take collective action in the past, but it shouldn’t come to that. The game is not currently capable of solving transnational issues like this at the moment and that needs to change if it wants to continue to claim to be a leading global sport in 2025.”

One player agent told ESPNcricinfo: “Some of these tournaments have no fear of ramifications… They sign big names promising huge contracts, pay a small percentage to get them on the flight, and never pay them another penny. The only solution to this is that the ICC, in return for sanctioning a tournament, has to provide some sort of system to verify that payments will be made.”

One commonly proposed solution is for leagues to pay players centrally via an escrow account. This mechanism would involve franchises paying their total wage bill directly to a third-party account before the start of a season, with the league then distributing salaries to players in line with their individual contracts – avoiding a situation where league and franchise blame one another for late payment.

Multiple sources have identified the growing circuit of T10 leagues as a repeat offender. Max60, a league which launched in the Cayman Islands last year, conceded that 10% of player wages remain outstanding from their inaugural tournament in August, while ESPNcricinfo understands that some players are yet to receive payment from November’s Abu Dhabi T10.

The Abu Dhabi T10 acknowledged some teams have paid players late, though described these as “isolated incidents”. A spokesperson said: “T10 has successfully operated in UAE for eight years now and never had any issues. While there have been isolated incidents of teams delaying payments, the league takes full responsibility for ensuring that all dues are cleared as soon as they come to our attention.

“As of now, we are not aware of any specific player formally reporting an issue,” they added. “However, we maintain a strict policy of addressing such matters promptly and taking the necessary action… The majority of players have been paid, and the remaining payments are currently being processed.”

A Max60 spokesperson said: “We plan to complete payments within the next two weeks. We did experience significant issues, such as one franchise not paying their agreed fees, which led to delays. However, with it being our first season, we are comfortable with our learnings.” The start date for the second edition of Max60 was recently postponed from March 13 to May 24.