Pro Kabaddi League Season 12 Player Auction Rules Explained

The blockbuster Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) Season 12 Player Auction is scheduled to take place in Mumbai on May 31 and June 1.

All 12 PKL franchises will be aiming to rebuild strong squads in the upcoming two-day auction.

Ahead of the PKL Season 12 Player Auction, a total of 83 players were retained across three categories, with 25 from the Elite Retained Players (ERPs), 23 from the Retained Young Players (RYPs), and 35 from the Existing New Young Players (NYPs) category.

Pawan Sehrawat, Arjun Deshwal, Ashu Malik, Devank Dalal, Naveen Kumar, Mohammadreza Shadloui and Fazel Atrachali are some of the non-retained players, all of whom will go under the hammer.

Here’s a look at some of the Pro Kabaddi League Season 12 Player Auction rules.

Who will be in the Player Pool?

The Pro Kabaddi Season 12 Player Auction will witness more than 500 players up for grabs. The star-studded player pool features top Indian stars who were released by the franchises after Season 11, along with other kabaddi players from the domestic circuit.

Apart from the Indian players, the PKL Season 12 Player Auction will witness overseas players from around the world go under the hammer.

What is the maximum squad size of a team?

Each team in the PKL Season 12 can have a minimum of 18 and a maximum of 25 players in their squad.

How many overseas players are allowed in a PKL Season 12 squad?

Every team can include a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 4 overseas players for the PKL Season 12.

What is each team’s player purse during the PKL Season 12 Player auction?

Each franchise will have a player purse of INR 5 crore in the PKL Season 12 Player Auction. However, the size of their purse has been adjusted depending on who and how many players they have already retained.

What are the player categories and base prices?

Players have been divided into four categories for the blockbuster PKL Season 12 Player Auction.

Category A players will have a base price of INR 30 lakh, Category B players will feature a base price of INR 20 lakh, Category C has a base price of INR 13 lakh, while Category D will feature the players with a base price of INR 9 lakh.

Each group is further divided into Raiders, Defenders, and All-Rounders, allowing franchises to assemble their squads based on strategic needs.

Elite Retained Players: How does it work?

Ahead of the PKL 12 player auction, each team could retain a maximum of six players across various categories.

Teams were allowed to retain their top performers under the Elite Retained Players (ERP) category so they didn't risk losing them to other teams in the player auction. A maximum of 3 players could be retained under this category.

Existing New Young Players and Retained Young Players: Who are they?

Teams retained a combined total of 58 players from the Existing New Young Players (NYP) and Retained Young Players (RYP) categories ahead of the PKL Season 12 Player Auction.

These categories comprise a few young players who have played a couple of PKL seasons in the past and they could be retained in the squad ahead of the new season.

What is the Final Bid Match?

The Final Bid Match (FBM) Card rule allows teams to buy back their released players by matching the final auction bid price for the player concerned.

What’s new in PKL Season 12 Player Auction?

The Final Bid Match (FBM) rule has been revised ahead of the PKL Season 12 Player Auction.

According to the updated FBM rule, teams can retain a player for either one or two seasons to support long-term team building and greater team continuity. Previously, the FBM rule allowed teams to retain a player for only one season.

How does the new FBM rule work?

When a former player secures a top bid from another franchise, their previous team can raise either the one-season or two-season FBM card to retain them.

How many FBMs does each team have?

For the PKL Season 12 Player Auction, each team can use up to 3 FBMs, except UP Yoddhas, who are eligible for 2 FBMs. The FBM card can be used based on the number of players retained ahead of the auction.

Teams with 6 ERPs retained → 1 FBM
Teams with 5 ERPs retained → 2 FBMs
Teams with 4 or fewer ERPs retained → 3 FBMs

For all the LIVE updates on the PKL Season 12 Player Auction for both 31 May and June 1, visit the LIVE Auction Centre on prokabaddi.com, the Pro Kabaddi Official App, or follow Pro Kabaddi on Instagram, Facebook, X & YouTube for all the latest updates!