The match schedule, featuring 12 teams, will be announced on July 30, Champions League Twenty20 chairman Lalit Modi said on Friday.

“We are glad to see the CLT20 taking shape and momentum as the year’s most eagerly-awaited club championship,” Modi said.

“Having had considerable experience from the Indian Premier League’s success in South Africa, we believe that the club concept will slowly but surely be accepted by cricket fans across the world. The Champions League Twenty20 is thus the ideal tournament to crown the best-of-the-best in club cricket from across the cricketing world.

“This time around we are fully equipped to conduct an extremely successful tournament in India and given the cooperation of our fellow-cricket boards from Australia and South Africa and ESPN STAR Sports, I am confident that the CLT20 will truly be a global event,” Modi said.

The teams that have qualified and are eligible to play in the inaugural Champions League Twenty20 include IPL 2009 champions Deccan Chargers and losing finalists Royal Challengers Bangalore. They will be joined by the top league-finishing team of Season 2009, Delhi Daredevils.

Other 2009 domestic finalists and winners include Victorian Bushrangers and New South Wales Blues from Australia, Cape Cobras and Diamond Eagles from South Africa, Otago Volts from New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago from West Indies and Wayamba from Sri Lanka.

England’s Twenty20 Cup finalists will be decided on August 25, 2009.

The teams will be divided into four groups of three each and will initially play each other on a league basis. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the second stage and four teams from the second stage would make it to the semi-finals.

The tournament will feature three teams from India (two finalists and the top league finishing team), top two domestic T20 teams from South Africa, England, Australia and the domestic T20 Champions from New Zealand, West Indies and Sri Lanka.

A total of 23 matches will be held in CLT20 carrying a prize pool of $6 million.

The teams will be divided into four groups of three each and will initially play each other on a league basis. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the second stage and four teams from the second stage would make it to the semi-finals, it was announced on Sunday.

The tournament was scheduled to be held in India last year but was postponed because of the Mumbai attacks.

The Royal Challengers, Deccan Chargers and Delhi Daredevils will represent India, Victoria and New South Wales will represent Australia, while the Cobras and Eagles will the two South African teams.

The tournament is a joint venture by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Cricket Australia (CA) and Cricket South Africa (CSA).

Lalit Modi, Chairman, CLT20, said, “I believe we have a concept that will inspire and motivate the future generations of club, state and county cricketers, while accelerating the development of the game globally.”

“Our South African experience has taught us that the club concept is slowly but surely being accepted by cricket fans across the world.”

James Sutherland, Chief Executive Officer of CA, and Gerald Majola, Chief Executive of CSA, were also present during the announcement.

Besides the three toppers of Indian Premier League, top two domestic T20 teams from South Africa, England, Australia and the domestic T20 champions from New Zealand, the West Indies and Sri Lanka will participate in the 12-team event.

“In the CL T20, I believe we have a concept that will inspire and motivate the future generations of club, state and county cricketers, while accelerating the development of the game globally,” IPL chairman and BCCI vice-president Lalit Modi said at a press conference in Johannesburg on Sunday.

“The inaugural edition did not take place last year due to unfortunate circumstances but we are fully equipped this time around to conduct an extremely successful tournament in India. I am confident that this will be a true global event the scale of which the cricketing world has not seen outside of the World Cups,” Modi added.

Victoria and New South Wales will represent Australia, while the Cobras and Eagles will represent South Africa – the other two founding member nations of the tournament along with India.