Hockey India League Auction: All you Need to Know About the Teams, Purse, Composition, Player Pool and Values

The Hockey India League makes its return following a seven-year hiatus and is set to move into the crucial auction period starting on the 13th of October. A total of eight teams in the men’s division and six teams in the women’s division will vie for the signature of the nation’s top stars in addition to international players, who have signed up to go under the hammer.

HIL seems to be intent on rectifying the mistakes of the previous editions, which ultimately rendered the league unsustainable, and have consulted a private entity to ensure the layout of a sustainable model.

The Teams:

Men’s division-

Tamil Nadu Dragons (Chennai)

UP Rudras (Lucknow)

Soorma Hockey Club (Punjab)

Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers (West Bengal)

Delhi SG Vipers (Delhi)

Kalinga Landers (Odisha)

Hyderabad Toofans (Hyderabad)

Gonakisa (Visakhapatnam)

Women’s division- (Two sides yet to be confirmed by HI)

Soorma Hockey Club (Haryana)

Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers (West Bengal)

Delhi SG Vipers

Odisha (Name TBA)

The Auction:

The auction will take place over three days between the 13th of October to the 15th. The first two days of the auction will witness the men being drafted into the sides, with the third and final day of the auction dedicated to the women’s division.

Team Composition:

Each unit will be required to pick a 24-man squad with 16 players from India, of which 4 need to be junior players, and 8 foreign players.

The Purse:

The total purse for each men’s team is set at Rs 4 Crores, while the women’s teams have a total purse of Rs 2 Crores.

Player Values:

Players are divided into three categories, Rs 2 Lakh, Rs 5 Lakh and Rs 10 Lakh, at the start of the auction, with each player deciding their own base price.

Player Pool:

Hockey India confirmed that over 1000 players have signed up for the auction, with over 400 Indian players and 150 foreign talents in the men’s division, and over 250 Indian players and 70 overseas players in the women’s section.

There is no upper limit a team can shell out for a particular player, but the owners would be required to be judicious in the usage of their funds with the total purse value in mind.

Where to watch:

The auction will be telecast on Doordarshan Sports, and will also be live-streamed on the Hockey India League channel.

The auction begins at 2 PM on Sunday, while the Monday and Tuesday slots are slated to begin at 9:30 AM.