The BCA has announced the dates for the fifth season of the WPL (Women’s Premier League) for the women’s Premier League 2027 season. The season will start on 14 January 2027 and will run until 7 February 2027 and fans now know when the next edition of the women’s T20 competition will be played next year.
This also confirmed a key date for the tournament. The WPL 2027 player auction will be held on October 28, 2026, at the Grand Hyatt Kochi and five franchises will work on building and reinforcing their teams for the upcoming season.
The retention deadline has also been set for September 28. Teams will decide which players from their existing teams they want to retain before going into the auction.
WPL 2027 to begin on 14 January.
The fifth season of the WPL will officially start on January 14 and conclude on February 7, 2027. In recent years, the league has moved into a January-February window, so that the tournament will be held in a separate period in the women’s cricket calendar.
The BCCI's announcement gives the five participating franchises a clear timeline for their preparations. The immediate priority will be the retention deadline on September 28, after which teams will have about a month to prepare for the auction.
The auction on October 28 will provide franchises with another chance to build their squads. Teams will review their existing combinations, identify gaps and look for players who can be added to their line-ups prior to the new season and help build them up before they get into the new one.
The WPL currently has five franchises: Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, UP Warriorz and Gujarat Giants. All five teams will take part in the 2027 edition.
WPL 2027 UPDATE:⏳
— Danish (@BhttDNSH100) September 16, 2026
📆 January 14 to February 7.
🔨 Auction: October 28 in Kochi.
📝 Retention deadline: September 28. pic.twitter.com/QFW1nSemVY
Auction to be held in Kochi on October 28
The WPL 2027 auction will be held on October 28 at Grand Hyatt Kochi. BCCI has already communicated the date to the franchises as preparations for the new season get underway.
The auction will be an important stage in the squad-building process. As the retention deadline takes place first, franchises will know which players remain in their groups before they enter the auction.
The event will also bring representatives from all five teams to Kochi as they try to complete their squads for the fifth season.
The WPL auction will generate huge interest from fans, especially as teams will be assessing their squads after the previous year. However, the final list of players for the auction will be better known once retained players are available from the retention process and registration steps.
WPL 2027 venues are still being finalized
The dates for the tournament have been set, but the BCCI is still working on the final venue plan for WPL 2027.
Mumbai's Brabourne Stadium has been reported as one of the venues under consideration, while Vadodara and Varanasi are also in discussions for the second venue. Varanasi's new stadium has emerged as an option, provided it is ready in time and passes the required assessment.
Thus, we expect BCCI to finalise the entire match schedule after venue decisions are made.
The idea of taking WPL matches to Varanasi would bring a new city into the league’s hosting plans if the league were to bring WPL matches to Varanasi. The stadium would be judged to be ready for competition before taking part in competitive fixtures would be taken into account for all of the teams; the stadium would have to be ready to host.
For now, the dates give the best picture of how we will get to WPL 2027. Player retentions will take place by September 28, the auction will be held in Kochi on October 28, and the tournament will start on 14 January and conclude on February 7.
Now that the fifth season is in place, attention will turn to the retention decisions before the franchises gather in Kochi for the auction later in October.
