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The Hundred to witness first-ever auction in ground-breaking move ahead of 2026 season

Debashis Sarangi

The Hundred auction to be conducted in March [Source: @SkyCricket/X]The Hundred auction to be conducted in March [Source: @SkyCricket/X]

In a significant development, England's premier white-ball league, The Hundred, will witness its first-ever auction ahead of the 2026 season. The first auction of the tournament will be held in March 2026, with the organising committee for The Hundred also increasing the salary pool for the men's and women's cricketers participating in the event. 

The Hundred's inaugural auction to take place in March 2026

As per The Hundred's official statement, men's and women's players will go under the hammer for the first time in the tournament's history in a marquee auction event in March 2026. Additionally, several ground-breaking amendments will be made in the player selection model, with the participants set to witness a significant surge in their salaries. 

Furthermore, teams will be allowed to keep 16 to 18 players in their squads, with a maximum of 4 overseas players. The overall salary pool in the men's Hundred will increase by 45%. Meanwhile, the salary pool in Women's Hundred will increase by 100% for the 2026 season. 

This means each team will be allotted a whopping budget of £2.05 million in the men's Hundred, with the Women's competition having £880,000 as the overall salary pool. In fact, the lowest paid player in the Women's Hundred will receive a salary of around £15,000, which is 50% more than that from the previous edition. 

The Hundred auction rules explained

The participating teams in The Hundred can pick up to four players as their pre-auction signings from mid-November to the end of January. However, only three pre-auction picks can be direct signings, and the teams must allot the remaining slot to either an overseas star or an England player with a central contract. 

Additionally, they must retain at least one player, who can either be one of England's contracted players or an overseas cricketer. A maximum of two centrally contracted English players can be roped in among the four pre-auction signings. However, unlike the IPL, the Right To Match (RTM) card will be unavailable in the inaugural Hundred auction.