[1][2] The first edition of the tournament was played in September and October 2015, as a precursor to the 2015–16 South African domestic season.

[7] The Africa T20 Cup partially filled the gap left in the South African calendar by the cancellation of the Champions League Twenty20.

The SuperSport television network, a major sponsor of Cricket South Africa, was the tournament's broadcaster.

[8] In 2016, it was suggested that the Africa T20 Cup would be expanded in the future to include other African countries, such as Uganda.

[10][11] However, Ghana declined Cricket South Africa's invite to compete in the tournament, and were replaced by Uganda.