The players’ auction is set to make a comeback in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) after a 12-year gap, as announced by the BPL Governing Council. The auction system was last used during the first two editions of the tournament in 2012 and 2013, before the league switched to a players’ draft format for the following nine seasons.

The upcoming auction will be held at a city hotel on November 23, where five franchises, Dhaka Capitals, Chattogram Royals, Rajshahi Warriors, Rangpur Riders, and Sylhet Titans, will participate to build their squads for the 12th edition of the franchise-based T20 league.

"Organized by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the BPL Governing Council, this year's auction will mark the beginning of a new franchise ownership cycle, introducing a restructured and transparent bidding process designed to align the BPL with international T20 franchise standards," BCB said in a statement as quoted by Cricbuzz.

Under the new players’ auction system for the BPL, local and overseas players will be classified into different categories with structured base prices and bidding increments. Local players will be divided into six categories, while overseas players will fall under five categories.

For local cricketers, those in the top ‘A’ category will have a base price of BDT 50 lakh, with bidding increments set at BDT 5 lakh. In the case of foreign players, the highest category will begin at USD 35,000, and bids will rise in increments of USD 5,000.

Each franchise will be permitted to sign up to two Bangladesh players from the A and B categories and one or two foreign players directly before the auction, subject to approval from the BPL Governing Council. The auction itself will be conducted in two phases, local players first, followed by overseas players.

Every franchise must purchase at least 11 local players from the auction, with a maximum limit of 15 local players in the squad. Directly signed players will not count toward this auction requirement.

Teams will have a budget cap of BDT 4.5 crore for local players, excluding the payments for directly signed players. While franchises can register an unlimited number of foreign players, only two to four can be part of the playing XI in any given match. Each team must buy a minimum of two overseas players through the auction, and the maximum budget for foreign players, including direct signings, has been fixed at USD 350,000 per team.

Payment for auctioned players will be made in three instalments: 25 percent upon signing, 55 percent before the team’s final league match, and the remaining 20 percent within 30 days after the tournament concludes. All payments will be subject to National Board of Revenue (NBR) tax regulations.

Franchises will be required to submit their final squad lists within 24 hours of the auction’s conclusion. All player contracts will adhere to the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) standard tripartite format, ensuring transparency and uniformity across all teams.