The Indian Premier League (IPL) has probably been a trendsetter for all the other T20 leagues to emerge from around the globe in various aspects including franchise system, overseas players regulations, impact players and just the sheer extravagant nature of the tournament to be the biggest T20 tournament in the world but it is the player auction, which stands out among everything else.
Now IPL, SA20 adopted it, most of the state leagues and leagues in other sports in India like Kabaddi and Hockey do it and it is time for ILT20 to ditch the traditional draft and jump on the auction bandwagon, given the equal purses provide all six teams an equal opportunity to bid for a player.
Hence, the first-ever ILT20 auction is set to witness over 300 players go under the hammer, with a maximum of 82 spots up for grabs. Each of the six teams has to have at least four local players from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), including a U-23 player, two players each from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, two from other Associate nations and a minimum of 11 from full-member nations. A team has to have a squad of at least 19 players, while the number can go up to 23, including two wildcard picks, for which they will be provided an extra $250K amount outside the total auction purse or $2m.
After retentions and pre-signings, a few teams have already gotten a few big names in their ranks and the auction will be about rounding up the rosters, filling whatever gaps they have left. From the Indian standpoint, R Ashwin has single-handedly diverted a bit of attention towards the auction and pre-signings of Dinesh Karthik and Piyush Chawla has further helped the tournament garner Indian interest and fans.
Apart from Ashwin, Shakib Al Hasan, Naveen ul Haq, Evin Lewis and Jason Roy are a few big-name overseas players in the auction pool, while Junaid Siddiqui, Dhruv Parashar and Rahul Chopra are the household names among the locals set to enjoy keen interest from the six teams.
| Franchise | Total slots left | Purse remaining |
| Dubai Capitals | 13 | $1.035 million |
| Gulf Giants | 13 | $1.035 million |
| Abu Dhabi Knight Riders | 13 | $825K |
| Desert Vipers | 14 | $802.5K |
| MI Emirates | 15 | $800K |
| Sharjah Warriorz | 14 | $1.025 million |
When and where to watch the ILT20 2025-26 auction live on TV and OTT in India?
The SA20 2025-26 will kick off at 3:30 PM IST (2 PM local time) on Wednesday, October 1, with the build-up programme to begin half an hour ago. The auction will be live broadcast on TV on ILT20's YouTube channel in India and across the world as well as on the Zee5 app and website.