The Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Arun Dhumal revealed that the auction for the 20th edition of the cash-rich league will be held in Goa in mid-December.

Goa has been finalised as the venue, with December 15 and 16 being considered as the likely dates. However, the event will be a one-day affair as it is a mini-auction.

“We have finalised Goa. The likely dates are December 15 to 16,” said Dhumal as quoted by PTI.

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IPL Auction to take place in India after three years

The IPL auction is set to return to India after three consecutive editions were held overseas. The 2024 auction took place in Dubai, while the 2025 mega auction was hosted in Jeddah. The 2026 auction was held in Abu Dhabi.

Dhumal had earlier said that bringing the auction back to India was a conscious decision by the BCCI.

The last IPL auction to be held in India was in December 2022 in Kochi, ahead of the 2023 season. Since then, the auction has moved outside the country, with Dubai, Jeddah and Abu Dhabi hosting the last three editions.

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The BCCI has now decided to bring the event back to India for the upcoming mini-auction.

Impact Player Rule Under Review

The BCCI is also looking for fresh feedback from IPL franchises on the Impact Player rule.

The issue was discussed during a recent meeting of the IPL Governing Council, with the board seeking views from all stakeholders before taking a decision.

The Impact Player rule allows teams to introduce a substitute at any stage of a match. The rule is currently scheduled to remain in place until 2027.

Notable players who are against Impact Player Rule

However, it has drawn criticism from several prominent players, including India ODI and Test captain Shubman Gill, former India captain Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel.

One of the key concerns raised by players is that the rule could reduce the importance of genuine all-rounders, as teams have greater flexibility to use specialist batters and bowlers.

The issue was also discussed ahead of IPL 2026, when several captains reportedly expressed their reservations to the BCCI and calls to scrap the rule gathered momentum.

Dhumal had earlier said that the BCCI was willing to review the rule after taking feedback from all stakeholders.

“The matter is under discussion. Will take feedback from all the stakeholders and then take a call on this,” he had said.


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