New Delhi, Nov 20 (IANS): Sony Pictures Networks (SPN) India has acquired exclusive pay television and IPTV broadcast rights of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) for India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bhutan, and Maldives and non-exclusive Free-to-air (FTA) rights for the same countries, excluding Sri Lanka, Sony announced on Friday.

Five franchisee teams, named after Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Dambulla and Jaffna, will compete

in the LPL, which is scheduled to be played between November 26 and December 16 at Mahinda Rajapaksha International Cricket Stadium (MRIC) in Hambantota.

In all, 23 matches will be played over 15 day period. Colombo will take on Kandy in the opening match and the final will be played on December 16.

Participating players include former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan, former Pakistani captains Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Malik, and Sri Lankan Angelo Mathews. At the time, several players, like Chris Gayle of West Indies, have pulled out of the tournament.

"We share a long-standing relationship with the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) board and as the rights holders of SLC, this is a natural extension. The LPL is a good brand of cricket that is set to feature many sub-continent players making it a very attractive addition to our cricket portfolio," said Rajesh Kaul, Chief Revenue Officer, Distribution and Head - Sports Business, Sony Pictures Networks India.

Global sports broadcasting giant Sky Sports have won the rights for UK while state-owned Independent Television Network have won the rights to telecast matches in Sri Lanka whereas Geo and PTV have won the telecast rights in Pakistan.