BCCI rules out immediate expansion to 12 IPL teams, declines to comment on January window
BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia told PTI during an interaction on November 11, 2026 that the Board has not discussed expanding the Indian Premier League from 10 to 12 teams and declined to weigh in on a proposal to shift the competition to a January window.
Saikia said the prospect of a 12-team IPL has not been discussed at any level and is not under consideration. "We have neither discussed formally nor informally the possibility of the IPL becoming a 12-team affair in 2028. It is not in our scope at this stage," Saikia told PTI during an interaction. He added the Board's immediate focus is the next edition: "We are concerned about the IPL of 2027, which is going to be the 20th edition of the IPL. So it will be a big affair. We are concerned about that and we are not considering anything beyond that," Saikia told PTI. On media speculation he said: "Whatever news is circulating in the media, I think these are all speculative reports from some fertile minds. I have no comments to offer regarding those. There is no sanctity to those reports," he clarified.
Acknowledging external interest in the competition, Saikia noted there is strong global attention on the IPL but reiterated the Board sees "no scope" for expansion at present. This remark underscored the BCCI's position against proceeding with additional franchises now.
On financial preparations, Saikia said no decision has been made about raising the team salary cap from Rs 125 crore to Rs 150 crore ahead of the next cycle. "There is nothing of that sort regarding an increase in the salary purse," he said, indicating the issue remains unresolved.
Saikia declined to react to Kolkata Knight Riders co-owner and Bollywood star Juhi Chawla's recent comment on 'X' proposing a January window for the IPL instead of the current April-May slot.
He said the Board is concentrating on staging the 2027 tournament and confirmed timing for the next player auction. "The mega auction will be sometime next year. This time it will not be a mega auction. Our auction is going to take place on December 16, which will be the last year of the cycle. Thereafter, we will take a call," he said.
Saikia's statements leave the BCCI's priorities clear: preparing for the 20th edition of the IPL in 2027, with the December 16 auction scheduled to conclude the current cycle before the Board makes any further decisions on expansion or salary-purse changes.
