IPL auction to take place in India, confirms Arun Dhumal

The IPL 2027 player auction is set to return to India after the recent practice of conducting the event overseas. The decision was taken at the Governing Council meeting on September 15. It will be a mini-auction, while the following year’s mega auction could once again be staged outside India, according to sources familiar with the developments.

The move follows concerns raised by IPL franchises about the practical difficulties involved in sending their teams and delegations abroad for a relatively smaller auction. The BCCI is understood to have taken those concerns into consideration after the previous auction in Abu Dhabi. The auction was last held in India in Kochi in 2023. Dubai, Jeddah and Abu Dhabi subsequently hosted the event.

Meanwhile, the venue for the 2027 auction has not yet been selected. The availability of suitable accommodation will be a key



consideration, particularly because the event is expected to take place during India’s wedding season between October and December. As per reports, the BCCI will need more than 100 rooms for franchise delegations for a couple of nights. The availability of five-star hotels in potential host cities will therefore play a major role in determining the location.

In the meantime, IPL chairman Arun Dhumal said the BCCI plans to host the auction in India but has faced difficulties in finding a suitable venue during the busy wedding period so far. 

"Every year we try for this to happen in India, but we don't get the venue given the heavy marriage season. So, we definitely want it to be here this year, given that it would be a smaller auction and hopefully we will get the venue,” Dhumal, who is set to be re-elected as IPL chairman during the BCCI AGM on September 18, told PTI.