IPL Retention Rules Explained: Dive Into the Details of the Game-Changing Laws for the 2025 Season

The 2025 season of the Indian Premier League is expected to be a spectacular affair as the league's governing body has officially released the new player regulations and norms for the upcoming auction before the new season. A lot of improvements have been made and expect the bidding war to get more intense. Moreover, the historic introduction of the match fees for every game adds value to the players' wallets, while some strict norms have also been put in place.

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IPL Governing Council Unveils Player Regulation Rules for 2025-27 season

According to the new retention guidelines, each of the ten IPL teams is allowed to keep a maximum of six players. These players can be purchased with the RTM [Right to Match] Card or they can be chosen following the retention rule. There is a significant twist, even though the IPL Governing Council has approved the retention of six players for the following three seasons. The teams would have to shell out a lot of cash to hold onto the next two players after keeping three.

1. First retention - ₹ 18 Crore
2. Second retention - ₹ 14 Crore 
3. Third retention - ₹ 11 Crore
4. Fourth retention - ₹ 18 Crore
5. Fifth retention - ₹ 14 Crore

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Explainer: Know All Details for the Retention Rule & Other Official Norms

• In the IPL 's history, match fees have been implemented for the first time. A match fee of ₹ 7.5 lakhs will be paid to each player (including impact players) for each game. This sum will be extra to what they were contracted for.

• Six players from each IPL team's current roster can be Retained ahead of the IPL Auction. Either Retention or the Right to Match (RTM) Card may be used to do it.
• The IPL franchise has the authority to select the retention and RTM combination. A maximum of 5 capped players (both Indian and overseas) and a maximum of 2 uncapped players may be present in six Retention/RTM squad.
• For the big auction, overseas cricketers must register if they are interested in taking part in the Indian Premier League. The overseas stars will not be allowed to sign up for the player auction the following year if they do not enroll themselves.
• A player will be barred from both the player auction and the tournament for two seasons if they register for the auction and, after being chosen, declare themselves inaccessible before the new IPL  season begins.
• A cricket player who currently holds a cap and has not participated in international cricket (Tests, ODIs and T20Is) during the five years leading up to the relevant season, will be marked as uncapped. This is a rule that only applies to Indian cricketers.
• The hotly debated Impact Player Rule will be a part of the upcoming season, and it will stay until IPL 2027.