2026 Major League Cricket season
Fourth season of Major League Cricket
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The 2026 Major League Cricket (also known as MLC 2026, or for sponsorship reasons as 2026 Cognizant Major League Cricket) was the fourth season of Major League Cricket, a franchise Twenty20 cricket league established in 2019 by American Cricket Enterprises (ACE) in the United States. The tournament was played from June 18 to July 18, 2026.[1]
DatesJune 18 – July 18, 2026
Administrator(s)American Cricket Enterprises
USA Cricket
USA Cricket
Cricket formatTwenty20
Tournament format(s)Double round-robin and playoffs
| |
| Dates | June 18 – July 18, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Administrator(s) | American Cricket Enterprises USA Cricket |
| Cricket format | Twenty20 |
| Tournament format(s) | Double round-robin and playoffs |
| Champions | Los Angeles Knight Riders (1st title) |
| Runners-up | Washington Freedom |
| Participants | 6 |
| Matches | 34 |
| Player of the series | Sunil Narine (Los Angeles Knight Riders) |
| Most runs | Andries Gous (Washington Freedom) (547) |
| Most wickets | Sunil Narine (Los Angeles Knight Riders) (18) Ottniel Baartman (Seattle Orcas) (18) Andre Russell (Los Angeles Knight Riders) (18) |
| Official website | Major League Cricket |
MI New York were the defending champions and were beaten in the playoffs by Washington Freedom, who went on to reach the final.[2] The Los Angeles Knight Riders won their first Major League Cricket title, defeating Washington Freedom by 1 run in the final, with Sunil Narine named both player of the match and player of the tournament for the 2026 season.[3][4]
Background
American Cricket Enterprises confirmed the fourth season ran from June 18 to July 18, 2026.[5] Season 3 set new records for ticket sales (up 53% year-on-year), broadcast reach (global carriage to 90+ countries), and digital engagement, with 84% of ticket purchasers being first-time buyers at MLC games.[6]
The full schedule for the fourth season was announced on March 20, 2026.[7] The season again featured a double round-robin league format of 30 matches, followed by four playoff matches, for a total of 34 matches — matching the 2025 season's total.[8]
A new venue, the Knight Riders Cricket Field at Fairplex in Pomona, California, was added to the tournament for the first time, replacing Broward County Stadium in Lauderhill, Florida.[9] The Oakland Coliseum hosted the championship final on July 18, 2026.[10]
Teams
All six teams from the previous season took part this season.[11]
| Franchise | Captain | Head coach |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Knight Riders | Jason Holder | Dwayne Bravo |
| MI New York | Nicholas Pooran | Mark Boucher |
| San Francisco Unicorns | Matthew Short | Cameron White |
| Seattle Orcas | Marcus Stoinis | Adam Voges |
| Texas Super Kings | Faf du Plessis | Stephen Fleming |
| Washington Freedom | Steve Smith | Ricky Ponting |
Squads
Each team was allowed to select their domestic players.[12]
Venues
Matches were held at three venues: Grand Prairie's Grand Prairie Stadium, Oakland's Oakland Coliseum, and Pomona's Knight Riders Cricket Ground at Fairplex.[13] This was the first tournament in which games were held at the Knight Riders Cricket Ground at Fairplex; the Oakland Coliseum also hosted the playoff matches and the championship final for the first time.[14]
| Grand Prairie | Oakland | Pomona |
|---|---|---|
| Grand Prairie Stadium | Oakland Coliseum | Knight Riders Cricket Ground |
| Capacity: 7,200 | Capacity: 12,000 | Capacity: 5,000 |
| Matches: 15 | Matches: 12 | Matches: 7 |
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Points table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco Unicorns (3rd) | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 0.487 | Advanced to Qualifier |
| 2 | Los Angeles Knight Riders (C) | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 0.245 | |
| 3 | Washington Freedom (R) | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 12 | −0.399 | Advanced to Eliminator |
| 4 | MI New York (4th) | 10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 10 | −0.165 | |
| 5 | Seattle Orcas | 10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 0.034 | Eliminated |
| 6 | Texas Super Kings | 10 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 6 | −0.151 |
Match summary
| Win | Loss | No result |
- Note: The total points at the end of each group match are listed.
- Note: Click on the points (group matches) or W/L (playoffs) to see the match summary.
| Visitor team → | LAKR | MINY | SFU | SO | TSK | WF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home team ↓ | ||||||
| Los Angeles Knight Riders | New York 6 wickets | Los Angeles 7 wickets | Seattle 20 runs | Los Angeles 6 wickets | Washington 6 wickets | |
| MI New York | New York 41 runs | San Francisco 9 wickets | New York 17 runs | Texas 6 wickets | Washington 5 wickets | |
| San Francisco Unicorns | Los Angeles 11 runs | San Francisco 5 wickets | San Francisco 2 wickets | Texas 22 runs | San Francisco 8 wickets | |
| Seattle Orcas | Los Angeles 81 runs | New York 5 runs | San Francisco 6 wickets | Seattle 9 runs | Seattle 5 wickets | |
| Texas Super Kings | Los Angeles 6 wickets | New York 8 wickets | San Francisco 7 wickets | Texas 6 wickets | Washington 3 wickets | |
| Washington Freedom | Los Angeles 18 runs | Washington 30 runs | Washington 5 wickets | Seattle 88 runs | Washington 1 wicket |
| Home team won | Visitor team won |
- Note: Results listed are according to the home (horizontal) and visitor (vertical) teams.
- Note: Click on a result to see a summary of the match.
League stage
Round 1 (Grand Prairie)
Seattle Orcas 220/2 (20 Overs) |
v |
Texas Super Kings 221/4 (18.3 overs) |
- Texas Super Kings won the toss elected to field.
- Faf du Plessis (Texas Super Kings) became the first batter to scored 1,000 runs in the MLC.[15]
- This was Texas Super Kings' highest successful run chase in the MLC.[16]
San Francisco Unicorns 150/7 (14 overs) |
v |
Los Angeles Knight Riders 154/3 (13.4 overs) |
- Los Angeles Knight Riders won the toss elected to field.
- The match was reduced to 14 overs per side due to rain.
Washington Freedom 216 (20 overs) |
v |
Seattle Orcas 219/5 (17.4 overs) |
- Seattle Orcas won the toss and elected to field.
Texas Super Kings 152/9 (20 overs) |
v |
San Francisco Unicorns 153/3 (17.5 overs) |
- San Francisco Unicorns won the toss and elected to field.
Washington Freedom 245/5 (20 overs) |
v |
MI New York 215/6 (20 overs) |
- MI New York won the toss and elected to field.
Los Angeles Knight Riders 196 (20 overs) |
v |
Seattle Orcas 115 (15.3 overs) |
- Seattle Orcas won the toss and elected to field.
Texas Super Kings 158 (19.2 overs) |
v |
MI New York 162/2 (17.4 overs) |
- MI New York won the toss and elected to field.
Round 2 (Oakland)
Texas Super Kings 161/8 (20 overs) |
v |
San Francisco Unicorns 139 (17.4 overs) |
- San Francisco Unicorns won the toss and elected to field.
Seattle Orcas 227/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Washington Freedom 139 (16.2 overs) |
- Washington Freedom won the toss and elected to field.
- Jessy Singh (Seattle Orcas) took his maiden five-wicket haul in T20s.
MI New York 127/9 (20 overs) |
v |
Texas Super Kings 132/4 (19 overs) |
- Texas Super Kings won the toss and elected to field.
Seattle Orcas 191 (19.2 overs) |
v |
San Francisco Unicorns 192/8 (19.4 overs) |
- Seattle Orcas won the toss and elected to bat.
MI New York 144/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Los Angeles Knight Riders 103 (17.5 overs) |
- Los Angeles Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.
Texas Super Kings 185/4 (20 overs) |
v |
Washington Freedom 187/9 (20 overs) |
- Texas Super Kings won the toss and elected to bat.
- Akeal Hosein (Texas Super Kings) became the first bowler to take a hat-trick in MLC.
Seattle Orcas 154/7 (20 overs) |
v |
Los Angeles Knight Riders 134/8 (20 overs) |
- Seattle Orcas won the toss and elected to bat.
Washington Freedom 190/4 (20 overs) |
v |
San Francisco Unicorns 193/2 (20 overs) |
- Washington Freedom won the toss and elected to bat.
Round 3 (Pomona)
Los Angeles Knight Riders 108 (17.5 overs) |
v |
Washington Freedom 110/4 (17.1 overs) |
MI New York 132/8 (20 overs) |
v |
Seattle Orcas 127/9 (20 overs) |
- Seattle Orcas won the toss and elected to field.
Texas Super Kings 173/5 (20 overs) |
v |
Los Angeles Knight Riders 175/4 (18.4 overs) |
- Los Angeles Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.
San Francisco Unicorns 126 (19.3 overs) |
v |
Washington Freedom 129/5 (18.1 overs) |
- Washington Freedom won the toss and elected to field.
- Anirudh Immanuel (San Francisco Unicorns) made his T20 debut.
Los Angeles Knight Riders 165/6 (20 overs) |
v |
MI New York 168/4 (19.5 overs) |
- MI New York won the toss and elected to field.
Seattle Orcas 121/9 (20 overs) |
v |
Texas Super Kings 112/9 (20 overs) |
- Texas Super Kings won the toss and elected to field.
- Dasun Shanaka (Seattle Orcas) became the first bowler to take a double hat-trick in MLC.
MI New York 104 (20 overs) |
v |
San Francisco Unicorns 105/5 (16.5 overs) |
- San Francisco Unicorns won the toss and elected to field.
Round 4 (Grand Prairie)
MI New York 143/9 (20 overs) |
v |
San Francisco Unicorns 146/1 (15.4 overs) |
- San Francisco Unicorns won the toss and elected to field.
Los Angeles Knight Riders 192/8 (20 overs) |
v |
Washington Freedom 174/8 (20 overs) |
- Washington Freedom won the toss and elected to field.
MI New York 179/8 (20 overs) |
v |
Seattle Orcas 162/6 (20 overs) |
- Seattle Orcas won the toss and elected to field.
Los Angeles Knight Riders 184/7 (20 overs) |
v |
San Francisco Unicorns 173 (19.1 overs) |
- Los Angeles Knight Riders won the toss and elected to bat.
Texas Super Kings 165 (20 overs) |
v |
Washington Freedom 166/7 (19.4 overs) |
- Washington Freedom won the toss and elected to field.
Seattle Orcas 190/7 (20 overs) |
v |
San Francisco Unicorns 194/4 (19 overs) |
- San Francisco Unicorns won the toss and elected to field.
MI New York 187/8 (20 overs) |
v |
Washington Freedom 190/5 (18.3 overs) |
- Washington Freedom won the toss and elected to field.
Texas Super Kings 171/9 (20 overs) |
v |
Los Angeles Knight Riders 172/4 (19.1 overs) |
- Los Angeles Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.
Play-offs
| Qualifier | Challenger | Final | |||||||||||
| July 15, 2026 – Oakland | July 18, 2026 – Oakland | ||||||||||||
| 1 | San Francisco Unicorns | 180/4 (20 overs) | QW | Los Angeles Knight Riders | 164 (19.4 overs) | ||||||||
| 2 | Los Angeles Knight Riders | 187/3 (20 overs) | July 16, 2026 – Oakland | CW | Washington Freedom | 163/9 (20 overs) | |||||||
| QL | San Francisco Unicorns | 231/6 (20 overs) | |||||||||||
| Eliminator | EW | Washington Freedom | 238/6 (20 overs) | ||||||||||
| July 15, 2026 – Oakland | |||||||||||||
| 3 | Washington Freedom | 270/4 (18.4 overs) | |||||||||||
| 4 | MI New York | 266/9 (20 overs) | |||||||||||
Qualifier
Los Angeles Knight Riders 187/3 (20 overs) |
v |
San Francisco Unicorns 180/4 (20 overs) |
- San Francisco Unicorns won the toss elected to field.
Eliminator
MI New York 266/9 (20 overs) |
v |
Washington Freedom 270/4 (18.4 overs) |
- Washington Freedom won the toss and elected to field.
- Andries Gous (Washington Freedom) became the first American cricketer to score a century in MLC.
- Nicholas Pooran (MI New York) became the first cricketer to score the fastest half-century (off 14 balls), breaking Rovman Powell's record (off 15 balls) and the fastest century (off 31 balls), breaking Finn Allen's record (off 34 balls) in MLC.
Challenger
Washington Freedom 238/6 (20 overs) |
v |
San Francisco Unicorns 231/6 (20 overs) |
- San Francisco Unicorns won the toss elected to field.
Final
Los Angeles Knight Riders 164 (19.4 overs) |
v |
Washington Freedom 163/9 (20 overs) |
- Washington Freedom won the toss and elected to field.
- Los Angeles Knight Riders won their maiden title after 4 years.[19]
Season statistics and awards
| Runs | Player | Team | Inns | HS | Ave | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 547 |  Andries Gous | Washington Freedom | 13 | 132 | 45.58 | 165.25 |
| 513 |  Matthew Short | San Francisco Unicorns | 12 | 121* | 64.12 | 146.15 |
| 465 |  Lhuan-dre Pretorius | San Francisco Unicorns | 12 | 102* | 46.50 | 176.13 |
| 438 |  Colin Munro | Los Angeles Knight Riders | 11 | 64* | 48.66 | 126.58 |
| 427 | Mitchell Owen | Washington Freedom | 13 | 155 | 32.84 | 197.68 |
- Source: ESPNcricinfo
| Wkts | Player | Team | Inns | Ovs | BBI | Eco |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 |  Sunil Narine | Los Angeles Knight Riders | 11 | 43.0 | 3/13 | 4.74 |
| Ottniel Baartman | Seattle Orcas | 9 | 33.0 | 4/33 | 7.48 | |
| Andre Russell | Los Angeles Knight Riders | 11 | 38.3 | 4/35 | 9.27 | |
| 17 | Matthew Short | San Francisco Unicorns | 10 | 27.0 | 4/17 | 7.14 |
| 16 | 5 players | |||||
- Source: ESPNcricinfo
Awards
On July 20, 2026, a list of end of season awards was announced.
| Name | Team | Award |
|---|---|---|
| Sunil Narine | Los Angeles Knight Riders | Most Valuable Player |
| Andries Gous | Washington Freedom | Leading run scorer |
| Sunil Narine | Los Angeles Knight Riders | Leading wicket taker |
| Andries Gous | Washington Freedom | Domestic Player of the Series |
| Matthew Tromp | Los Angeles Knight Riders | U23 player of the tournament |
Broadcasting
| Country/Sub-region | Rights holder(s) |
|---|---|
| United States & Canada | Willow |
| Caribbean | ESPN |
| United Kingdom | Sky Sports |
| Middle East & North Africa | Cricbuzz |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | ESPN |
| India | Star Sports, JioHotstar |
| Australia | Seven |
| New Zealand | Sky NZ |
| Rest of world | MLC Network YouTube |