Barbados to host revamped 2026 Women’s CPL; Jamaica Empress join expanded four-team ‘festival’

The Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL) is getting a major facelift.

An expanded four-team tournament, a brand-new franchise in the Jamaica Empress, and an uninterrupted ten-day window in Barbados form the bedrock of a re-engineered 2026 edition, which organisers are billing as a holistic “festival” of women’s cricket.

The entire eight-match tournament will take place at the iconic Kensington Oval in Bridgetown during the first two weeks of September.

While previous editions of the WCPL have shared the spotlight and scheduling windows with the men’s CPL, the 2026 iteration represents a distinct shift toward giving the women’s game its own dedicated, standalone identity.

The headline on-field change is the arrival of the Jamaica Empress. The newly minted franchise joins the Barbados Tridents, Guyana Amazon Warriors, and Trinbago Knight Riders, ensuring that the Caribbean’s four traditional cricketing powerhouses are all represented.

The tournament kicks off on September 5 with a high-stakes clash between the home-favourite Tridents and the Trinbago Knight Riders. The group stage features double-headers and marquee weekend fixtures before culminating in a breakout playoff system: a standalone semi-final between the second and third-placed teams on September 16, followed by the final on September 17.

“The WCPL is about much more than what happens on the field,” Pete Russell, the WCPL CEO, said. “We are creating a platform where women can be celebrated, communities can come together, and young girls can see clear pathways to success in sport and beyond.”

Under a new creative banner titled “She’s In”—which will be heavily pushed across female-focused social media channels in the region—the league is targeting a broader cultural footprint.

Matchdays at Kensington Oval will be treated as community hubs. Organisers have confirmed that the tournament will feature dedicated children’s activity zones, cricket clinics, health and wellness pop-ups, and marketplaces specifically showcasing products from female entrepreneurs across the Caribbean.

For West Indies captain and WCPL star Hayley Matthews, the tournament’s evolution hits close to home.

“I’ve seen firsthand the impact of WCPL on women across the region,” Matthews said. “It’s powerful and far-reaching. It illuminates the potential in every girl, giving them not just visibility, but something to believe in and a dream to chase.”

While the 2026 edition focuses heavily on consolidating and celebrating regional talent in Barbados, the league’s top brass already have an eye on the global T20 landscape.

Plans are reportedly already underway for the 2027 season to open the doors to franchise teams from outside the Caribbean, a move that would position the WCPL as a direct competitor to other burgeoning global domestic leagues and significantly alter the women’s cricket calendar.

For now, though, the focus shifts squarely to Barbados. The fixtures are locked in, the squads are taking shape, and the Caribbean is ready to take centre stage. (Modified CPL Press Release) 

2026 WCPL Full Fixture Schedule