Top News

The Indian Premier League may become much larger in 2028 with the BCCI hoping to expand the tournament from 74 to 94 matches a season.

The IPL Chairman Arun Dhumal has revealed that the board are exploring a significant format switch to coincide with the next media rights cycle. Although the number of matches will increase, the number of teams is expected to remain at 10.

This proposed format will see the return of a full home and away league structure whereby every team plays every other team twice over the course of the season. The system had previously been implemented in an eight team IPL but reverted to its current format after the number of franchises in the league were expanded to 10.

Dhumal said:

"At the given set of teams, only we can go for more number of matches. So it doesn't make sense as of now to increase the number of teams. Because if we have to have an equal number of home and away matches, from 74 we can go up to 94. That would be the ideal situation."

The main obstacle to overcome in BCCI's plan is finding enough space in the global cricket schedule.

Currently the ICC Future Tours Programme is fixed until 2027 therefore the IPL only gets a fixed two-month window to be played. A 94-match tournament will need an extended window as regular scheduling of double headers cannot cater for a larger volume of games alone.

Dhumal clarified:

"Since the bilaterals are locked in till 2027, we would need a bigger window to raise the number of games from 74 to 94. So we are looking for a bigger window post-2027 bilateral cycle. In case we can get that, we will definitely try to have 94 games."

The BCCI are likely to attempt to secure an extended two-and-a-half-month window for the IPL for the next ICC cycle.

Also Read | BCCI Opens Up on Why Bengaluru Lost IPL 2026 Final After KSCA’s Shocking Ticket Request

This move is also connected to the views of the fans and its popularity.

In the current structure, the 10 teams are distributed in the virtual group which makes it a bit difficult for the majority of the fans to keep the pace with the league tables. Sources indicate that during the middle of the season the league suffers from declining television rating owing to the confused structure of the tournament.

By opting for a standard home and away season, the BCCI hopes to make the tournament more simple for its fans as well as broadcasters.

Another aspect on which the board focuses is on retaining 10 franchises rather than increasing more because that will allow the standard of cricket to be more reliable and thus avoiding stretching the players and the schedule.

If the suggestion goes through, the 94 match IPL from 2028 will be the most substantial one till date and the latest change in the rise of franchise cricket.