The WPL 2027 auction is the player-buying event where every Women’s Premier League franchise rebuilds its squad for the new season, this time armed with the biggest spending purse the league has handed teams so far. Retentions are already shaping who stays and who hits the block, and a clutch of overseas stars could push prices into record territory. Here is everything reported and confirmed so far, including where you can watch it live.
Key Takeaways
- The WPL 2027 auction is expected to carry the largest per-team purse since the league’s 2023 launch.
- Franchises enter with a fixed set of retentions already locked in, leaving a defined number of open slots for auction day.
- The pool is likely to mix released overseas all-rounders with India’s next wave of uncapped domestic talent.
- Live coverage is expected on the Star Sports network and the JioHotstar app, continuing the league’s existing broadcast deal.
When Is the WPL 2027 Auction and Why Does It Matter?
The BCCI hasn’t put out an official date yet for the WPL 2027 auction, but the board’s own pattern gives a fair clue. The first three editions of the Women’s Premier League all had their auctions in December, roughly two to three months before the tournament itself got underway. Expect something similar this time, likely a December 2026 sitting ahead of a February-March 2027 season.
It matters because this is the fifth edition of a league that changed the economics of women’s cricket almost overnight. Before 2023, India’s best women cricketers were playing domestic cricket for a few lakh rupees a season. The WPL auction is now the single biggest pay day in the women’s game anywhere in the world, bigger than the Women’s Big Bash or England’s Hundred.
How Big Is the Purse for the WPL 2027 Auction?
When the league launched in 2023, each of the five franchises walked in with a purse of ₹12 crore. That number has climbed in every edition since, as broadcast and sponsorship revenue grew alongside the league’s TRPs. Reports close to the WPL 2027 auction suggest the per-team purse will again move higher, continuing a trend rather than breaking it.
The bigger shift isn’t just the purse size. It’s what that money buys. A top-order batter who went for ₹1-2 crore in 2023 can now expect bids well past that mark, because teams have more room to spend and fewer genuine match-winners to chase.
What’s the Retention and Slot Picture This Time?
Every WPL franchise is allowed to retain a capped number of players before the auction, a mix of domestic and overseas picks that counts against their purse. The rest of the squad, including any released stars and fresh faces, gets filled on auction day. That retention list is what decides how many available slots each side actually has when the bidding starts.
Base prices in WPL auctions have followed a tiered structure similar to the one used in the IPL:
| Category | Typical Base Price Band |
| Capped Indian players | ₹30 lakh – ₹50 lakh |
| Uncapped Indian talent | ₹10 lakh – ₹20 lakh |
| Overseas players | ₹30 lakh – ₹50 lakh and above |
Expect the WPL 2027 auction to run on broadly the same bands, with franchises using their leftover purse to chase a handful of marquee names and then filling out the rest of the roster cheaply.
Which Big Names Could Be in the WPL 2027 Auction Pool?
Nobody can confirm the final pool until the BCCI releases it, but auction history gives a sense of who draws the big bids. Overseas all-rounders like Australia’s Ellyse Perry, England’s Nat Sciver-Brunt and South Africa’s Marizanne Kapp have been headline names in every edition so far, and any of them entering the pool unattached would spark a bidding war. On the domestic side, keep an eye on uncapped Indian batters and spinners from the Women’s Premier League’s feeder tournaments, the kind of unknown names who turned into breakout stars in 2023 and 2024.
Teams that fail to retain their full core, or release a big name over budget disagreements, usually hand the market its most expensive lot. That dynamic alone is worth tracking once squads confirm their retentions.
Where to Watch the WPL 2027 Auction Live
The WPL’s broadcast arrangement has stayed with the Star Sports network since season one, with digital streaming available on what is now the JioHotstar app after Reliance and Disney merged their Indian streaming operations in 2025. The auction itself, like the IPL’s, is typically telecast live rather than just streamed, since it draws nearly as much attention as a match day. For background on how the league itself is structured, the Women’s Premier League’s official history is a useful reference point while details for 2027 firm up.
Cricket’s Riches, Hockey’s Reality: A Note From the Press Box
I’ve spent most of my career writing about hockey, a sport that gave India eight Olympic golds and somehow still can’t fill a stadium or fund a turf resurfacing on time. Watching the WPL 2027 auction numbers climb every season is a strange feeling from that side of the press box. It isn’t that cricket has too much money. It’s that other sports, hockey chief among them, have been starved of the policy attention that builds this kind of economy. A women’s cricketer today can out-earn an entire state-level hockey team’s annual budget in one evening of bidding. That gap isn’t about talent. It’s about where the administrators chose to point the spotlight.
FAQ
When will the WPL 2027 auction take place?
No official date is out yet, but based on past editions, expect it in December 2026, ahead of the 2027 season.
How big is the purse for the WPL 2027 auction?
Reports suggest it will be the highest yet, continuing the steady rise from the ₹12 crore per-team purse set at the league’s 2023 launch.
How many teams play in the WPL?
Five franchises currently compete: Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, UP Warriorz and Gujarat Giants.
Where can I watch the WPL 2027 auction live in India?
Expect live coverage on Star Sports television and streaming on the JioHotstar app, in line with the league’s existing broadcast deal.
Who are the biggest names to watch in the auction?
Overseas all-rounders with a strong WPL track record and India’s emerging uncapped talent typically draw the sharpest bidding.
Conclusion
The WPL 2027 auction will tell us a lot about where women’s cricket is headed financially, not just who plays for which team. Watch the purse numbers and the retention lists first; the rest of the story follows from there.