Bumper year for European cricket

The Pepsi ICC European Development Programme has announced its most extensive tournament schedule to date.

Twenty-eight European nations compete in 11 tournaments throughout July, August and September 2009.

The Europe region has added a fifth division to its senior tournament programme so that all 30 of its member countries will now have the chance to progress into the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League and qualify for the ICC Cricket World Cup.

Divisions Three, Four and Five will be hosted by Spain, Cyprus and Greece. It will be the first time that Cyprus and Greece will host a regional ICC event.

Their inclusion as hosts has led to the extension of the European cricket season into September thanks to their milder Mediterranean climates.

The three senior tournaments will be played in round robin format and the end result will be automatic promotion and relegation for the first and last place teams respectively. The only exception to this rule is for the winner of Division Three who will face a play-off against Croatia for promotion into Division Two in 2010.

The women’s tournament programme has been expanded to include an Under-17 championship to give the junior national sides from Ireland, the Netherlands and Scotland their first experience of international competition. This event will take place in the Netherlands at the end of July.

A week later the senior women’s sides from the same countries will travel to Dublin, Ireland for the senior championship. For the first time a Twenty20 round robin with follow the longer format of the game in both of the women’s championships.

There is also a busy junior programme made up of U15 Divisions One and Two, U17 Division One and U19 Divisions One and Two.

The season gets underway on July 14 with the U19 World Cup Qualifier in Jersey. The top two countries from this tournament will progress to the Global U19 Cricket World Cup Qualifier in late 2009, and ultimately to the U19 Cricket World Cup in Kenya in February 2010.

2009 ICC European Championship Schedule

July 14-20: ICC European U19 Division 1 WCQ - Jersey
Participants - Denmark, Guernsey, Ireland, Jersey, Netherlands, Scotland

July 19-24: ICC European U15 Division 1 - Dundee, Scotland
Participants - Denmark, Guernsey, Ireland, Jersey, Netherlands, Scotland

July 27-Aug 1: ICC European U17 Division 1 - Northern Ireland
Participants - Denmark, Guernsey, Ireland, Jersey, Netherlands, Scotland

July 27-30: ICC European Women's U17 - Netherlands
Participants - Ireland, Netherlands, Scotland

Aug 3-9: ICC European U19 Division 2 - Belgium
Participants - Belgium, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Israel, Italy, plus 1/2 tbc

Aug 3-6: ICC European Women's Senior - Dublin, Ireland
Participants - Ireland, Netherlands, Scotland

Aug 11-13: ICC European A Team - Netherlands
Participants - Denmark: Ireland: Netherlands: Scotland

Aug 16-21: ICC European U15 Division 2 - Bologna, Italy
Participants - Belgium, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Israel, Italy, plus 1/2 tbc

Aug 31-Sep 5: ICC European Division 3 - Murcia, Spain
Participants - Belgium, Malta, Isle of Man, Israel, Portugal, Spain

Sep 7-12: ICC European Division 5 - Corfu, Greece
Participants - Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Sweden, Turkey

Sep 14-19: ICC European Division 4 - Cyprus
Participants - Austria, Cyprus, Finland, Luxembourg, Slovenia, Switzerland