IPL 2027 Retention: Deadline, Rules and Where Teams Stand
Last updated: 29 October 2026
Every IPL team has until Sunday, 15 November 2026 to tell the league which players it is keeping for IPL 2027 and which ones it is letting go. This is the retention. It decides how much money each team takes into the auction in Goa on 16 December, and which players are up for grabs.
Below is the date, the rules, how this year is different from the 2025 mega auction, and where all ten teams stand right now.
IPL 2027 Retention in Short
- Deadline: Sunday, 15 November 2026 Reported
- How many players a team can keep: no limit, as long as the squad stays within 25 players and 8 overseas
- Cost: every retained player’s fee comes out of the team’s auction purse
- Right to Match (RTM): not used at the 2027 mini auction
- Auction: Wednesday, 16 December 2026, Goa Reported
When Is the IPL 2027 Retention Deadline?
The deadline is Sunday, 15 November 2026. ESPNcricinfo first reported the date, and the IPL has told all ten teams about it. The BCCI has not put out a public notice yet, so we mark it as reported.
In past seasons, the IPL published every team’s retained and released players on deadline day itself. So the full lists should be out on 15 November. We will update this post and all ten squad pages the same day.
| Date | What happens | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 15 Nov 2026 | Teams submit their retained and released players | Reported |
| After 15 Nov | The IPL sends the pool of registered players to the teams so they can make shortlists | Reported |
| About 9 Dec 2026 | Trade window closes, a week before the auction | Reported |
| Week before the auction | Final auction list and the order of player sets go to the teams | Reported |
| 15 Dec 2026 | Briefing for all ten teams in Goa | Reported |
| 16 Dec 2026 | IPL 2027 auction, one full day | Reported |
IPL 2027 Retained and Released Players List
The full list of retained and released players for all ten teams goes up right here on 15 November 2026, as soon as the IPL publishes it. For each team, you will see who stayed, who was let go, how much money is left in the purse and how many spots are open for the auction.
Coming on 15 November: team-by-team retained and released players, purse left and open slots. Not announced
Until then, you can see every player currently under contract on our IPL 2027 teams page.
IPL 2027 Retention Rules
The 2027 auction is a mini auction, the last one before the next mega auction ahead of IPL 2028. That keeps the retention rules short. Here is what every team has to work with.
No limit on retentions
A team can keep as many players as it likes. The only limits are the squad size of 25 and the 8 overseas spots.
Fees come out of the purse
Every player a team keeps is paid out of its purse. Keep a lot of expensive players, and there is less money left for the auction.
Full squads must release
If a squad already has 25 players, the team has to let players go before it can buy anyone at the auction.
No Right to Match
There is no RTM card at a mini auction. A team that releases a player and wants him back has to win him in open bidding.
Trading carries on
Retention day does not stop trades. Teams can still swap or buy players until about a week before the auction.
Released players can come back
A released player can register for the auction, and any team can buy him there, including the team that let him go.
Mini vs Mega Retention: What Is Different This Time
If you followed the retentions before the 2025 mega auction, this year will look very different. Back then, teams could only keep a handful of players, at fixed prices. This time, they can keep almost everyone.
| IPL 2025 (mega auction) | IPL 2027 (mini auction) | |
|---|---|---|
| Players a team could keep | Up to 6, counting retentions and RTM together | No limit, within 25 players and 8 overseas |
| Cost of keeping a player | Fixed amounts: ₹18 crore, ₹14 crore, ₹11 crore, ₹18 crore and ₹14 crore for capped players, and ₹4 crore for an uncapped player | His current contract fee |
| RTM at the auction | Yes | No |
| Retention deadline | 31 October 2024 | 15 November 2026 |
| Auction purse | ₹120 crore | Not announced yet (₹125 crore in 2026) |
Where Every Team Stands Before Retention
On our count, 9 of the 10 teams already have a full squad of 25. Only KKR have a spot open, after Ajinkya Rahane retired. So every team that wants to buy at the auction will have to release players first. Here is where each one stands.
| Team | Squad now | Biggest contract | One thing to watch |
|---|---|---|---|
| CSK | 25 players 8 overseas | Ruturaj Gaikwad, ₹18 crore | MS Dhoni says he will decide before December whether he plays in 2027. He is on ₹4 crore. |
| DC | 25 players 8 overseas | Axar Patel, ₹16.5 crore | Rishabh Pant is back on ₹15 crore. DC have not named a 2027 captain yet; Axar Patel led them in 2026. |
| GT | 25 players 7 overseas | Rashid Khan, ₹18 crore | Runners-up in 2026. They have 7 overseas players, so one overseas spot is open. |
| KKR | 24 players 8 overseas | Cameron Green, ₹25.2 crore bid | They need a new captain after Ajinkya Rahane retired in July 2026, and they have one squad spot open. |
| LSG | 25 players 7 overseas | Nicholas Pooran, ₹21 crore | They need a new captain after Pant left. Kuldeep Yadav joined from DC on ₹13.5 crore. |
| MI | 25 players 8 overseas | Jasprit Bumrah, ₹18 crore | New head coach Kieron Pollard after a 9th-place finish in 2026. |
| PBKS | 25 players 8 overseas | Shreyas Iyer, ₹26.75 crore | Captain Shreyas Iyer has the biggest contract in the league at ₹26.75 crore. |
| RR | 25 players 8 overseas | Yashasvi Jaiswal, ₹18 crore | Made the playoffs in 2026 under Riyan Parag and lost Qualifier 2. |
| RCB | 25 players 8 overseas | Virat Kohli, ₹21 crore | Back-to-back champions. Virat Kohli is their biggest contract at ₹21 crore. |
| SRH | 25 players 8 overseas | Heinrich Klaasen, ₹23 crore | T Natarajan came back from DC in a trade, with Zeeshan Ansari going the other way. |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
Players and fees come from our squad pages, built from the official IPL 2026 retention and auction records plus every trade and retirement since. Fees are 2026 fees, or the new fee after a trade. Cameron Green’s ₹25.20 crore was KKR’s bid; under the overseas fee cap, he is paid ₹18 crore.
How Retention Decides the Auction Purse
The money a team takes to the auction is its purse minus the fees of every player it keeps. Last year’s retention, before the 2026 auction, shows how wide that gap can be.
Biggest purse in 2026
₹64.3 crore
KKR, after keeping only 12 players
Smallest purse in 2026
₹2.75 crore
MI, after keeping 20 players
Retained in 2026
173 players
Leaving 77 spots for the auction
The 2027 purse has not been announced. Teams had ₹125 crore each in 2026, and the total salary cap for 2027 is reported at ₹157 crore, which also covers performance pay and match fees. Once the lists are out, we will add every team’s purse left to our IPL 2027 auction guide.
Past IPL Retention Deadlines
Mid-November is the usual slot in a mini auction year, so 15 November 2026 fits the pattern.
| Season | Retention deadline | Auction | Auction date and venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 15 Nov 2022 | Mini | 23 Dec 2022, Kochi |
| 2024 | 26 Nov 2023 | Mini | 19 Dec 2023, Dubai |
| 2025 | 31 Oct 2024 | Mega | 24–25 Nov 2024, Jeddah |
| 2026 | 15 Nov 2025 | Mini | 16 Dec 2025, Abu Dhabi |
| 2027 | 15 Nov 2026 Reported | Mini | 16 Dec 2026, Goa Reported |
IPL 2027 Retention FAQs
When is the IPL 2027 retention deadline?
Sunday, 15 November 2026. The IPL has told all ten teams that their retained and released lists are due by then. The BCCI has not put out a public notice yet.
How many players can a team retain for IPL 2027?
There is no fixed limit before a mini auction. A team can keep as many players as it wants, as long as the squad stays within 25 players and 8 overseas. Every retained player’s fee comes out of the purse.
Is there RTM in the IPL 2027 auction?
No. Right to Match cards are only used at a mega auction. If a team wants a released player back, it has to win him in open bidding.
Will CSK retain MS Dhoni for IPL 2027?
It is not decided yet. On 24 October 2026, Dhoni said he will decide before December whether he plays in 2027. He is still under contract with CSK at ₹4 crore. We will update this once CSK’s list is out.
Can teams trade players after the retention deadline?
Yes. The trade window stays open until about a week before the auction, around 9 December 2026. It opens again after the auction and runs until a month before the season.
Where can I see the IPL 2027 retained and released players list?
The IPL publishes the official lists on iplt20.com, and each team shares its own. We will post the full list for all ten teams here on 15 November and update every squad page the same day.
Keep Reading
See the full squads of all ten teams on our IPL 2027 teams page, and everything about auction day, from the start time in your country to the rules, in our IPL 2027 auction guide.
Sources: CricTracker and Outlook (deadline, trade window, player list), Business Standard (mini auction rules, salary cap), IPLT20.com (2026 retentions and purses), Mumbai Indians (2025 retention slabs), CricTracker (Dhoni), IPL 2023 personnel changes (past deadlines). Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
