The wall at twenty teams
Below twenty teams, a league runs on relationships. Above it, relationships stop scaling: you no longer know every captain, and informal agreements start contradicting each other.
Write the rulebook first
Points, tie-breakers, walkovers, eligibility, disciplinary process. Publish it before the season and apply it without exception. Leagues rarely die from bad rules — they die from inconsistent ones.
Officials are the real constraint
Grounds and teams are easier to find than trained umpires and scorers. Recruit a season ahead, pay them properly, and keep a standby roster for every match day.
- Two officials trained for every one you need
- A fixed match fee published in advance
- A simple post-match feedback loop
Split into divisions early
Nothing kills retention like 200-run defeats. Promotion and relegation keep matches close, keep weaker teams returning, and give stronger teams something to chase.