It's game over for Champions League T20

It is curtains down for the Champions League Twenty20. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has virtually decided to scrap the tournament – which was once seen as the UEFA Champions League of cricket.

At the working committee meeting of richest cricket board (and CLT20 stakeholder) BCCI in Kolkata on Sunday, the BCCI decided to call a meeting of the Champions League T20 Governing Council and put a stamp on the decision.

Other stakeholders - Cricket Australia and Cricket South Africa have been already informed that the broadcaster, Star Sports, is finding it difficult to continue its association with the tournament. All three boards are waiting to hear from Star about its exit offer. 

"The meeting will be called sooner than later. The discussions have been going on for a while," said CSA president Chris Nenzani. It is understood that Star, which is believed to be losing $100 million a year, will be asked to pay a hefty exit amount to the three boards. 

CLT20 has never quite grabbed the attention of the fans, and more crucially, the sponsors ever since its inception in 2009. Despite having plenty of teams from the IPL, the Champions League T20 has not been able to latch onto the knock-on effect. The three stakeholders in the tournament – unable to come up with a format that they hoped would make the CLT20 as popular as the UEFA Champions League in football.

With inputs from a story published in Mumbai Mirror.