The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is thinking of giving Diwali gifts to the fans. The board can announce 2 new teams for IPL 2022 in October. BCCI has prepared its blueprint. Earlier the new teams were to be announced in May, but it was pushed forward after the league was suspended due to Corona. The board had said at that time that their entire focus was on ending IPL 2021. In such a situation, they will not float tender for new teams.
But now the board will announce the teams soon. After this, there can be a mega auction in December. Auction for media rights will be held in January.
However, the biggest challenge before the board will be regarding the base price for the tender. Till last year, the board was thinking of keeping a base price of Rs 1500 crore for new teams, but after the current changes in the Rajasthan Royals franchise, the board is considering it again. The base price of new teams can be Rs 2000 crores. According to media reports, 4 players can be retained from next season.
The board can take this decision after the IPL Phase-2, which runs from September 19 to October 10. The league was suspended on May 4 after 29 matches after Corona's case surfaced. There are still 31 matches left in it. BCCI can float a new tender for both the teams in the next month i.e. August. It will be finalized in October. A total of 10 teams will play in the next season instead of 8.
Last month, Liverpool-based investor Redbird Capital Partners bought a 15% stake in Rajasthan Royals. However, it was not known how much this deal took place. Redbird Capital Partners also has stakes in English football clubs Liverpool and the Boston Red Sox.
According to sources, the deal between Redbird and Rajasthan Royals increased the monetary value of the franchise from about Rs 1863 crore to Rs 2235 crore. Therefore, the base price of new teams can be fixed up to Rs 2000 crore.
Earlier, Inside Sports also spoke to some senior board officials. Officials had said that we have not finalized anything regarding the base price. IPL is a great source of investment and they have got returns in return. According to my, the value of new teams will not be less than Rs 2000 crores. However, nothing is final on this yet.
During the first IPL auction in 2008, the base price for 8 teams was kept around Rs 372 crore. This will not be the first time that 10 teams will play in a season. Earlier in IPL 2011 also 10 teams have played. Pune Warriors and Kochi Tuskers were the 2 new participating teams. However, after this Kochi was banned. 9 teams participated in the 2012 and 2013 seasons of IPL. In 2013 the league once again returned to an 8-team tournament.