IPL 2027 auction to be held in India, 2028 mega auction abroad
BCCI's Governing Council has decided to hold the IPL 2027 players' auction in India, with the 2028 mega auction to be held abroad.
The IPL 2027 players' auction will now be held in India. The decision was taken at the IPL Governing Council meeting held on September 15. The IPL auction had been held outside the country for the last three years, but this time the BCCI has approved holding it in India.
The IPL 2027 auction will take place in December this year, though a date has not yet been fixed. The same meeting also made clear that the IPL 2028 mega auction will be held abroad.
The IPL auction is now returning home. The last IPL auction held in India was in Kochi in 2023. The three auctions after that were held abroad, in Dubai, Jeddah and Abu Dhabi. But for the 2027 season, the auction is now coming back to India.
After this decision to hold the auction in India, the BCCI expects attendance to rise compared to last year. The Governing Council will now decide which Indian city will host the auction. The venue will be decided keeping in mind all facilities and the franchises' preferences. The wedding season in India falls between October and December, so a city with five-star hotels available will be chosen.
The IPL auction is usually held in November or December, which is also the wedding season in India. So the venue will be decided based on the accommodation available for franchises and their representatives. The BCCI needs more than 100 rooms in a single five-star hotel to hold the auction. Keeping all this in mind, the date and venue of the auction will be decided.
The September 15 Governing Council meeting settled the decision on the IPL 2027 auction, but no decision has yet been made on the impact player rule. A final decision on this is expected at the next Governing Council meeting.
Concerns had been raised about the logistical and operational difficulties of taking teams abroad for a relatively small auction. BCCI members had noted these same concerns during last year's auction held in Abu Dhabi. Taking this into account, the Governing Council has decided to choose an Indian city for this year's auction.
