Melbourne Stars and Renegades to merge as Victoria opts to sell BBL team: report

[p]CV currently owns both the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/melbourne-stars/MPk7NTBN/"]Melbourne Stars[/a] and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/melbourne-renegades/rZj3O9dH/"]Melbourne Renegades[/a] but have been one of the leading Australian state bodies in the push for BBL privatisation. [/p][p]The state body has made no secret of its desire to proceed with the sale of one of its two licences, despite Cricket Australia not being able to reach an agreement with all six states regarding the privatisation of the BBL as a whole. [/p][p][a href="https://www.sen.com.au/news/2026/06/02/bbl-16-tom-morris-breaking-news-stars-and-renegades-to-merge-into-solo-victorian-bbl-franchise" target="_blank"]Morris reported[/a] on Tuesday afternoon that CV will be looking to sell one of their two licences "[b]as soon as possible[/b]", merging the Stars and the Renegades into one Melbourne side, with the team likely to wear Victoria's iconic navy blue and play out of the MCG. [/p][embed guid="9635a5b1-b8a0-4b7e-9501-701930072834" url="https://x.com/tommorris32/status/2061720811145413036" social-type="twitter" /][p]The immediate future of the Renegades had been unclear for months after their contract with Melbourne's Docklands (Marvel) Stadium lapsed at the end of 2025-26, with CV previously looking into a shared venue model including the MCG, Junction Oval and Geelong's GMHBA Stadium. [/p][p]The Renegades had also been mooted to be one of the two teams selected to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/news/cricket-big-bash-league-2026-bbl-season-opener-appears-set-to-take-place-in-india/AN7IZMH6/"]play the 2026-27 BBL season opener in Chennai[/a].[/p][p]There would be no requirement for the privately operated side to be based in Melbourne or even Victoria, leaving the door ajar for a new Melbourne rivalry in 2026-27 or potentially the opening up of a new market such as Canberra or Geelong. [/p][p]According to Morris, CA and the state bodies are due to meet again in Melbourne on June 15 to discuss the league's privatisation. [/p][p]The Stars were the only one of the BBL's eight franchises to have never won the title, whilst the Renegades' only title came in 2018/19 with a famous finals win over their crosstown rivals. [/p][p]Crowds of 68,124 (MCG) and 42,846 (Marvel Stadium) to the two Melbourne derbies last season indicate there's still a vociferous appetite for a crosstown rivalry in the BBL. [/p]