BCCI Struggles To Find Venue For IPL 2025 Auction. Report Reveals Shocking Reason

Finding a suitable hotel or venue has proven to be a huge task for BCCI as pricing has emerged as a significant factor among the franchise owners. The costs of hotels in Saudi Arabia is considerably higher than that in Dubai and that has proven to be an issue for BCCI and the team owners.

The report further claimed that London was the initial option for the auction but the plan was changed due to the cold weather. “The BCCI and IPL officials are now looking for a place which can host the auction for two days and accommodate the entire IPL entourage, including the 10 franchise delegations and a large entourage involving two broadcasters – Jio and Disney Star,” the report said.

The BCCI recently released the guidelines for the marquee event as the franchises are allowed to retain a maximum of six players with the Right-To-Match option also included in it.

As per the guidelines sent to the franchises, they have to pay Rs 18 crore, 14 and 11 for their first, second and third priorities of retentions, respectively.

The fourth retention will be made at 18 and the fifth could be done at 14. Meanwhile, an uncapped player could be retained for 4 crores.

Saudi interest in the IPL

The IPL auction presents an entry point into cricket for Saudi Arabia, which has been expanding its reach into various sports such as with English Premier League team Newcastle United, and exhibition events in tennis drawing the biggest names in the sport.

The presence of the richest franchise league in cricket in Saudi Arabia might be seen as a good investment for the BCCI, offsetting the higher cost it may present in the short-term. This follows a Bloomberg report in 2023 which expressed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s desire to invest in a stake in an IPL holding company.

On the logistical front, the BCCI is seeking a suitable location to host two days of the big auction for the ten teams, as well as to accommodate broadcast and media crews for these teams as well as broadcasters Disney Hotstar and Jio.