Updated October 2026 | All stats are as of the end of IPL 2026 (final played 31 May 2026).
Quick answer: this guide explains how IPL auction works, from the purse to the bidding. Each franchise bids against the others for players using a fixed purse, which was ₹120 crore per team at the 2025 mega auction. A squad must have between 18 and 25 players, no more than eight of them overseas, and a team has to spend at least 75 per cent of its purse. Players are listed with a base price between ₹30 lakh and ₹2 crore, bids rise in fixed steps, and a player goes to the highest bidder when no other team wants to go higher.
| Rule summary | |
|---|---|
| Introduced | 2008, the first IPL season |
| Applies to | All ten franchises, every year (mega and mini auctions) |
| Squad size | At least 18 and at most 25 players, with no more than eight overseas |
| Purse | ₹120 crore per team at the 2025 mega auction |
| Minimum spend | At least 75% of the total available salary purse |
| Base price | From ₹30 lakh to ₹2 crore |
| Right to Match | Used at the 2025 mega auction; not part of the 2026 mini auction |
How the IPL Auction Works: What This Rule Actually Says
The IPL auction is an open auction in which each of the ten franchises has a fixed amount of money, called the purse, and uses it to buy players. A player is sold to the highest bidder once no other team wants to go higher.
Four rules shape the whole event:
- A fixed purse. A team cannot spend more than its purse. At the 2025 mega auction every team started with ₹120 crore, before the cost of retained players was taken out.
- A squad of 18 to 25. A team must finish with at least 18 players and cannot exceed 25.
- At most eight overseas players. This limit applies to the squad as a whole.
- A minimum spend. A franchise must spend at least 75 per cent of its total available purse, so a team cannot simply keep its money.
Each player is listed with a base price, which is the lowest amount at which bidding can start. Base prices run from ₹30 lakh to ₹2 crore.
When It Was Introduced and What Problem It Solved
The IPL has used an auction since its first season in 2008. A franchise league needs a way to share out the best players among the teams, and an auction does that with money. Every team has the same chance to bid, and the price is set by demand.
The system has changed over time. Auctions were priced in US dollars until 2013 and in rupees from 2014. Six auctions have been mega auctions that rebuilt squads (2008, 2011, 2014, 2018, 2022 and 2025), and the rest have been mini auctions.
How the IPL Auction Works, Step by Step
- Before the auction. Franchises name the players they are keeping. At a mega auction a team can keep up to six players (retentions and Right to Match cards together), and the cost comes out of its ₹120 crore purse. At a mini auction there is no limit on how many players a team keeps.
- Players are called out in sets. The auctioneer announces each player and his base price, and any team can bid.
- Bids rise in fixed steps. The step is ₹5 lakh up to ₹1 crore and ₹10 lakh from ₹1 crore to ₹2 crore. At the 2025 mega auction the step was then ₹20 lakh from ₹2 crore to ₹5 crore, and ₹25 lakh above ₹5 crore.
- The hammer falls. When no other team will bid higher, the player is sold to the last bidder and the price is taken from that team’s purse.
- Right to Match, if it applies. At a mega auction a team that holds a Right to Match card can buy back one of its former players. Under the modified 2025 rule, the highest bidder gets one final chance to raise the price before the team holding the card decides.
- Unsold players and the accelerated round. Players who go unsold are called again in an accelerated round, where teams request the players they want. Players who still do not sell stay in the pool in case a team needs an injury replacement.
- Final checks. By the end, each squad has to have 18 to 25 players, no more than eight overseas, and at least 75 per cent of the purse spent.
How a bid climbs: a worked example
Bids move up in fixed steps, so the path from a base price to a final price is easy to count. Using the steps from the 2025 mega auction and starting from the lowest base price of ₹30 lakh, this is how many one-step bids it takes to cross each band if every bid rises by exactly one step:
| Band | Size of each step | Bids needed to cross the band |
|---|---|---|
| ₹30 lakh to ₹1 crore | ₹5 lakh | 14 |
| ₹1 crore to ₹2 crore | ₹10 lakh | 10 |
| ₹2 crore to ₹5 crore | ₹20 lakh | 15 |
| ₹5 crore to ₹27 crore | ₹25 lakh | 88 |
| Total | 127 |
So a player who started at ₹30 lakh and ended at ₹27 crore would, bid by bid, pass through 127 steps. One exception is the final raise allowed under the Right to Match rule. In the Pant example below, the last move from ₹20.75 crore to ₹27 crore was a single raise by Lucknow after Delhi used the Right to Match card.
What the squad rules mean in practice
The squad limits sound simple, but they put real limits on how a team can spend:
- A minimum-size squad of 18 players, with no more than eight overseas, has to include at least 10 Indian players.
- A full squad of 25 players, with no more than eight overseas, has to include at least 17 Indian players.
- The 75 per cent rule is a floor, not a target. As an illustration, a team with ₹120 crore available would have to spend at least ₹90 crore and could leave up to ₹30 crore unspent.
Mega auction versus mini auction
| Mega auction (2025) | Mini auction (2026) | |
|---|---|---|
| When it happens | Every few years; the last was in 2025 | In the years between mega auctions |
| Where | Jeddah | Abu Dhabi |
| Players a team can keep | Up to six, retentions and Right to Match cards together | No limit |
| Right to Match | Yes, in the modified form | Not part of the 2026 rules |
| Overseas fee cap | Not applied | Applied, so a foreign player’s fee can be lower than the winning bid |
| Costliest buy | Rishabh Pant, ₹27 crore | Cameron Green, ₹25.20 crore |
A Worked Example From a Real Auction: Rishabh Pant, 2025
The sale of Rishabh Pant at the 2025 mega auction shows several of these rules at work, including the Right to Match.
| Step | What happened |
|---|---|
| 1. Opening bids | Lucknow Super Giants opened the bidding, and other teams, including Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Sunrisers Hyderabad, bid against them. |
| 2. The price passes ₹20 crore | The bidding passed ₹20 crore, with Lucknow still in. |
| 3. Delhi uses Right to Match | Delhi Capitals, Pant’s former team, used their Right to Match card. The price at that point was ₹20.75 crore. |
| 4. Lucknow raises to ₹27 crore | Under the modified rule the highest bidder could raise once more, and Lucknow went to ₹27 crore. |
| 5. Delhi stops | Delhi did not match, and Pant was sold to Lucknow for ₹27 crore, the highest price in IPL history. |
₹27 crore is 22.5 per cent of a ₹120 crore purse. Read about the player on his IPL career stats page.
How the Auction Changed Team Tactics
Because the purse is fixed, every auction is a budgeting problem. The 75 per cent minimum spend means a team cannot sit on its money. Teams also decide before the auction how much they are prepared to spend on a single player.
The Right to Match card changes tactics at a mega auction. A team that wants a player held by a rival has to consider whether the rival will use the card. In Pant’s case Delhi used it, but did not match Lucknow’s final raise to ₹27 crore.
Controversies and Criticism
- The Right to Match card. It was first used at the 2014 mega auction, used again in 2018, dropped for 2022 and brought back for 2025. Supporters see it as a reward for the team that developed a player. Critics see it as a way for one franchise to hold up bidding for everyone else. The modified 2025 rule, which lets the highest bidder raise once more after a Right to Match, tries to balance the two views.
- The overseas fee cap. At the 2026 mini auction Cameron Green was bought for ₹25.20 crore, but his fee is capped at ₹18 crore. The rest, ₹7.20 crore, is deposited with the BCCI for player welfare, although the buying team’s purse was charged the full ₹25.20 crore.
- Overseas venues. The auction was held abroad for the three years from 2024 (Dubai, Jeddah and Abu Dhabi). The next auction, a mini auction, will be held in Goa in December 2026, the BCCI secretary has said.
How the IPL Version Differs From Other T20 Leagues
South Africa’s SA20 also fills squads through an auction rather than a draft, and for its fourth season (2025-26) it allowed up to six pre-auction retentions, with no more than three overseas and three South African players. The Pakistan Super League used a draft from 2016 to 2025 and held its first player auction for the 2026 season, on 11 February 2026 in Lahore. Each franchise could keep up to four players, and the league dropped its right-to-match option, which makes it a useful contrast with the IPL, where the card is part of the mega auction.
For the retention side of the process, see the IPL rules explained section, and for the franchises themselves see the IPL teams guide. The IPL 2025 season review shows how the teams that came out of the 2025 mega auction performed.
Related guides: the IPL auction explained, IPL retention rules, most expensive IPL auction buys, IPL rules explained.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the IPL auction work?
The IPL auction is an open auction in which ten franchises bid for players using a fixed purse (₹120 crore per team at the 2025 mega auction). Squads must have 18 to 25 players, no more than eight overseas, and a team must spend at least 75 per cent of its purse. Bids rise in fixed steps and each player goes to the highest bidder, unless a team uses a Right to Match card at a mega auction.
When was this rule introduced?
The auction has been part of the IPL since the first season in 2008. The Right to Match card was first used at the 2014 mega auction, used again in 2018, dropped for 2022 and brought back for 2025. Auctions were priced in US dollars until 2013 and in rupees from 2014.
Does this rule apply in other leagues?
Some of them. South Africa’s SA20 also uses an auction, and the Pakistan Super League moved from a draft to an auction for its 2026 season. Leagues differ on retention and on right-to-match rules.
How many overseas players can an IPL team have?
No more than eight overseas players in the squad. A squad must have between 18 and 25 players in total.