Major League Tournament

The Major League Tournament is Sri Lanka's national cricket championship. It began in the 1937–38 season, but it did not gain first-class status until 1988–89. The tournament has had several titles:

  • 1937–38 to 1949–50 – Daily News Trophy
  • 1950–51 to 1975–76 – P. Saravanamuttu Trophy
  • 1976–77 to 1981–82 – Robert Senanayake Trophy
  • 1982–83 to 1990–91 – Lakspray Trophy
  • 1991–92 to 1997–98 – P. Saravanamuttu Trophy
  • 1998–99 to 2014–15 – Premier Championship
  • 2015–16 to 2021–22 – Premier League Tournament
  • 2022–23 to present – Major League Tournament

There have been five seasons in which no competition was held:

  • 1941–42 – cancelled because of World War II
  • 1942–43 – cancelled because of World War II
  • 1965–66 – no competition
  • 2020–21 – cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic
  • 2021–22 – replaced by a temporary regional competition

The 2024–25 tournament, completed on 8 March 2025, was the 83rd edition overall, and the 35th first-class one.

The title has been won outright in 79 editions, and there have been four shared titles:

  • 1985–86 – Singhalese Sports Club and Nondescripts Cricket Club
  • 1988–89 – Singhalese Sports Club and Nondescripts Cricket Club (the inaugural first-class season)
  • 1994–95 – Singhalese Sports Club and Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club
  • 2023–24 – Singhalese Sports Club and Police Sports Club

Singhalese Sports Club have won the championship a record 29 times, most recently in 2016–17. The team was relegated after the 2024–25 tournament, and will lose its first-class status in 2025–26.[1]

Other teams with multiple titles are Nondescripts (14), Bloomfield (9), Colombo Cricket Club (8), Colts Cricket Club (6), Tamil Union Cricket and Athletic Club (3), Chilaw Marians Cricket Club (2), and the defunct Nomads Sports Club (2). Current MLT teams who have won one title are Burgher Recreation Club, Moors Sports Club, and Ace Capital Cricket Club.[a]

18 teams took part in the 2024–25 tournament, and were divided into two round-robin groups. The Group A teams were Bloomfield, Colts, Ace Capital, Police SC, Panadura Sports Club, Badureliya Sports Club, Chilaw Marians, Negombo Cricket Club, and Ragama Cricket Club. The teams in Group B were Nondescripts, Moors, Colombo, Tamil Union, Kurunegala Youth Cricket Club, Nugegoda Sports and Welfare Club, Burgher, Singhalese, and Kandy Customs Sports Club.[2]

Notes

  1. ↑ Ace Capital Cricket Club were the Sri Lanka Ports Authority Cricket Club when they won the tournament in 2014–15.

References

  1. ↑ "Bloomfield end 15-year wait for Major League title". The Sunday Times. 9 March 2025. Retrieved 24 May 2025.
  2. ↑ "Sri Lanka Major League Tournament, 2024-25—Groups A and B tables". CricketArchive. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
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