IPL 2026 Auction: Dates, Venue, and Major Player Moves
The cricketing world is buzzing with anticipation as the auction for the 2026 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is officially scheduled for December 15–16. While the final venue is yet to be confirmed, sources strongly indicate that the event will be held in Abu Dhabi, adding an international flavour to the proceedings.
A Look Back at the Historic 2025 Season
The 2025 IPL season will be remembered for a truly emotional victory. In a story that captivated the nation, Virat Kohli, the man wearing the iconic number 18, finally ended his 18-year-long wait for an IPL trophy. Leading the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Kohli's team clinched a thrilling victory in the final against the Shreyas Iyer-led Punjab Kings (PBKS). The match, held at the massive Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, was decided by a narrow margin of just six runs, sealing a fairytale ending for Kohli and his legion of fans.
Player Trades and Retention Rules Shaping Teams
As teams prepare for the upcoming auction, the trading window is alive with activity. A major development reported earlier involves the Rajasthan Royals (RR). The franchise is reportedly preparing a blockbuster trade that would send their captain and star wicketkeeper-batter, Sanju Samson, to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). In return, RR would acquire the formidable all-round duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran.
This potential move has sparked discussions about leadership within RR, with players like Dhruv Jurel and Yashasvi Jaiswal emerging as front runners for the captaincy should Samson depart.
The clock is ticking for all ten franchises, as the deadline for submitting the final player retention list is November 15, 2025. Teams can continue to engage in trades and player swaps right up until one week before the auction in mid-December. The trading window officially opened on June 4, 2025, the day after the 2025 final, and will close briefly before the auction. It will then reopen after the auction concludes, finally closing one month before the start of the 2026 season.
Player trades in the IPL can be executed in several ways:
- Swapping players who have the same price tag.
- Swapping players with different values, where the team receiving the more expensive player pays the difference.
- An all-cash trade, where a team sells a player purely to increase its available auction purse.
Understanding the IPL 2026 Retention Policy
Unlike the mega auctions that force a major squad overhaul, the upcoming event is a mini-auction. This gives teams significant flexibility. There is no restriction on the number of players a team can retain from its current squad. Franchises are free to keep any number of players, provided they adhere to two key rules: the total squad size cannot exceed 25 players, and the total spending must stay within the salary cap limit of Rs 120 crore.
With the retention deadline of November 15 fast approaching, team managements are working strategically to build balanced and powerful squads capable of lifting the coveted trophy in 2026.
