The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) launched the Indian Premier League (IPL) on September 14, 2007. Based on the lines of the English Premier League (EPL) and the National Basketball League , the IPL is said to be the brainchild of BCCI vice-president Lalit Modi. The idea was first floated in 1996 but was shot down as the board felt it would go against the zonal system of domestic cricket. The project moved into top gear when the Zee group launched a rival Indian Cricket League on similar lines in April 2007.