The ICC is considering expanding its powers and oversight over T20 franchise leagues, with proposals that could significantly affect competitions such as the UAE's ILT20 and Major League Cricket (MLC) in the United States.

Cricket's chief executives and board heads are set to discuss the recommendations at the ICC's quarterly meeting in Bali this weekend. 

The ICC's franchise leagues review group, formed in July and led by former Bangladesh opener and current BCB president Tamim Iqbal, put forward the proposals.

The key recommendations include enforcing the existing limit on overseas players in a playing XI, expanding the ICC's authority to review or audit sanctions granted to leagues by Full Member boards, restricting sponsorship by betting companies or their surrogate brands, making the use of the ICC's Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) or an ICC-approved integrity unit a condition for sanction, and introducing a fee for league sanctioning.

The overseas player rule could have the biggest immediate impact on ILT20 and MLC. 

ILT20 currently allows up to nine overseas players in an XI, while MLC permits six. Both leagues received exemptions when the ICC introduced overseas player limits in 2023.

A proposed cap of four overseas players could significantly affect the commercial viability of both competitions and force franchises to rely more heavily on local players.

The review group also wants the ICC to gain the power to intervene in sanctions granted by Full Member boards. 

Under the proposed framework, the ICC could review, reject or even remove a sanction if a member fails to meet its obligations or if serious integrity concerns emerge around a league.

To address growing concerns over corruption, the group has recommended that leagues must use the ICC's ACU or another ICC-approved integrity unit. 

In high-risk competitions, the ACU could be engaged at the organisers' expense, while leagues unable to put adequate anti-corruption measures in place could have their applications rejected.

The recommendations also call for restrictions on betting company sponsorships, arguing that such deals could facilitate illegal betting, increase corruption risks and raise ethical and governance concerns.

The ICC is further considering charging leagues a sanctioning fee, which could be used to fund due diligence checks and corruption investigations.

The review group has also identified several issues for further discussion, including making solidarity payments for overseas players mandatory and standardised, bringing greater clarity to the status of legends leagues, and potentially limiting the number of franchise leagues an ICC member can host.

The recommendations will first be discussed by the ICC's Chief Executives' Committee before being sent to the ICC Board for approval where necessary.