Melbourne Stars and Melbourne Renegades are likely to continue as separate entities for at least one more season despite Cricket Victoria's decision to merge the two Big Bash League franchises amid discussions surrounding opening the league to private investors.
In a meeting held between Cricket Australia (CA) and the chairs of state associations on Monday, June 15, an agreement was reached "in principle" for a hybrid model where teams could decide whether they would sell stakes in the BBL clubs to
private investors, but it requires bringing the Australian Cricketers Association (ACA) to the fore, with players seeking a better pay structure.
Victoria threw plans into disarray when they announced the merger of their two teams ahead of any official vote from CA, which led to meetings being called in a rush. They applied to trademark three potential new names, Rangers, Blazers and Magic, and have expressed their commitment to selling their second stake. ESPNcricinfo has reported that the Stars could continue for the 2026-27 season, while the Renegades will operate under temporary management led by former Stars general manager Max Abbott and will still be funded by Victoria.
It was further reported that the privatisation plans could be finalised by next month, including agreements with the ACA, with clubs going into the market to test their valuations by October of the year. But there does exist scepticism from states that the process could take more time.
On the evening of June 14, ACA Chief Paul Marsh sent out an email that the body would not be accepting the current privatisation model due to concerns over player salaries, with frustrations from players surrounding overseas stars earning more than domestic stars. Players have been reportedly seeking an alteration to the percentage share of salaries mentioned in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to 30% from the current 27.5%, an idea which CA has shown resistance to.
The ACA are also set to meet with the Renegades and Stars players who have been affected by the franchise merger. It was confirmed that the player lists would not be affected by the merger, but both clubs will need to complete their squads.
The vote from Monday's meeting was the first time New South Wales and Queensland showed favour to the privatisation bid, after opposing the initial proposal. South Australia had initially proposed the self-determination model, allowing clubs to make their own decisions. Western Australia, Tasmania, and Victoria have been in favour of the privatisation bid.
