About JCPL
The Gap
The Gap in the Game
Junior cricket in England runs from April to September. Once the summer season ends, the vast majority of competitive juniors — the ones who live for match day, who have nets three times a week, who dream about the game — have nowhere to play competitive cricket for six months or more.
Net sessions and indoor practice are useful. But they’re not the same. You can’t replicate the pressure of a live game, a real scoreboard, a team that’s counting on you. That’s what the JCPL provides.
What we are
What Is the JCPL?
The Junior Cricket Premier League is a franchise-format, all-weather outdoor cricket competition for U9–U13 players, designed to fill the shoulder season. We run two short, high-intensity phases each year — a Post-Season Spark in September–October and a Pre-Season Launch in February–March — each lasting 4–6 weeks of Sunday afternoon cricket.
Every franchise has a name, a colour, an identity. Players belong to their franchise across a full phase — building team loyalty, competitive habit and match sharpness. The format is fast and skill-focused. Every player bats. Every player bowls. Every ball matters.
Matches are played on all-weather astroturf surfaces using a roll-out cricket wicket — meaning weather almost never stops play, and any outdoor sports facility with a suitable surface can host us. We are not dependent on traditional cricket grounds.
The Technology
Tech-Enabled from Day One
The JCPL is built to give junior players a fun modern experience Every match is captured on video tp creat fun clips of boundaries, wickets and key moments for highlights.
Every player who registers with the JCPL gets a permanent player profile — stats, match history, video highlights — that builds across every phase they play.
Mixed Cricket & Girls' Pathway
Open to Everyone
The JCPL is mixed by default. Every franchise is open to boys and girls — no segregation, no separate rules. Where sufficient demand exists, we will run a parallel girls-only league. Clubs and academies can register their interest in a girls-only competition when they apply. The JCPL is committed to the ECB’s goals on girls’ cricket participation — and we’re building a format that makes that easy.
The Access Fund
The JCPL Access Fund
Cricket can be exclusive. We know that. The JCPL Access Fund provides funded places for teams from lower-income areas — covering the team registration fee in full for franchises where 60% or more of the squad are from IMD Decile 1–4 postcodes. Applications are assessed fairly by a two-person panel.
We also host matches at carefully chosen and accessible venues so most teams from most areas can participate.
Our Mission
The JCPL was founded in Leeds upon realising the effects of the off-season gap. The league is inspired by the franchise model that has transformed youth sport globally — giving young players, an experience, the identity, competition and recognition that they see in franchise cricket, complementing the brilliant traditional club structure.
We are launching a Leeds pilot in September 2026 with 8 founding franchises. If it works — and we believe it will — we’ll scale to other cities in 2027 and beyond. We’re not just building a competition. We’re building the infrastructure for year-round junior cricket in England.