BCCI has finalised the blueprint for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022. Two new franchises, player retention, a mega auction, increments in the salary purse, and a fresh media rights tender are among the plans that are waiting to be rolled out between August 2021 and January 2022.
BCCI would introduce two new franchises to the extravagant league. A tender document will be brought out in mid-August and following the mandatory checks, bids will be opened in mid-October, to be timed with the final of IPL-Phase 2 which will be held in the UAE.
BCCI Set To Increase The Salary Purse And Allow Franchises To Retain 4 Players In IPL 2022 With Conditions
Kolkata-based RP Sanjiv Goenka Group, who owned Rising Pune Supergiants in the past, is interested to be involved once again. The Adani group headquartered in Ahmedabad, Aurobindo Pharma Ltd based out of Hyderabad, and the Torrent Group that operates from Gujarat are learned to be showing interest in the new franchises. Additionally, some other corporate entities and private equity and investment advisory firms are also showing interest.
The mega auction was scheduled to be held in 2021, but that could not happen with a jam-packed schedule in place and of course the prevailing pandemic. The auction was rescheduled to 2022. Player retention has also been finalized. Each franchise will be allowed to retain four players, but with the following conditions – they can either retain three Indians and one overseas player or two Indians and two overseas players.
BCCI is set to increase the salary purse from Rs 85 crore to Rs 90 crore, which means adding Rs 50 crore to the total salary pool (among 10 franchises). Franchises must mandatorily spend 75% of the allotted purse. Over the next three years, the purse will increase from Rs 90 crore to Rs 95 and eventually Rs 100 crore ahead of the 2024 season.
Franchises retaining players must deduct specified sums from their salary purse before heading into an auction. The salary deduction, in the existing structure, is stipulated as follows: Rs 15 cr, Rs 11 cr, and Rs 7 cr if three players are retained; Rs 12.5 cr and Rs 8.5 cr if two players are retained; and Rs 12.5 cr if only one player is retained.
BCCI Planning The Big Media Rights Auction Too
With the salary purse set to increase by Rs 5 cr (85 to 90), and BCCI allowing the franchises to retain a maximum of four players now, this structure may undergo a slight change going forward.
“Some players may like the idea of not wanting to be retained and will want to head into the auction pool. That’s because there’s an increase in the salary purse and two new teams are being added. So, there’ll be a rush to grab talent. Expect some leading Indian cricketers to forward their names for the auction,” say those tracking developments.
And finally, the BCCI is planning the big media-rights auction too, towards the end of 2021. With the month of March now potentially being available to them for an early start of IPL 2023 onwards – that’ll help the board accommodate 90-plus matches between 10 teams.
The board and the industry expect a minimum 25% increase in the value of media rights. The Covid-19 pandemic has seen a massive rise in the OTT space as against the traditional linear broadcast and that factor alone will dictate the rights industry in the forthcoming months.