The PSL expanded to eight teams with Sialkot ($6.5M) and Hyderabad ($6.2M), highlighting the huge financial gap with the IPL, where top players earn nearly as much as a PSL team and new franchises sell for hundreds of millions.
Pakistan Super League (PSL) took a major step in the expansion of the tournament by adding two franchises, taking the number of teams to eight ahead of the upcoming season, which will begin on March 26. PSL committee conducted the auction of two new teams – Sialkot and Hyderabad – at the PSL franchise auction in Islamabad on Thursday, January 9.
Over the last 10 seasons, the Pakistan Super League operated with six teams – Islamabad United, Karachi Kings, Multan Sultans, Lahore Qalandars, Peshawar Zalmi, and Quetta Gladiators. Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed the expansion of the league to an eight-team competition in 2024, and the formal tender was officially launched to invite applications for the two new franchises.
The PSL franchise auction witnessed interest from multiple bidders for the sale of two new teams, Sialkot and Hyderabad, with the PCB apparently eyeing the long-term commercial growth of the league through expansion into new markets.
Which Teams Sold to Whom?
Sialkot and Hyderabad attracted competing bids from two different groups during the process, with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) shortlisting successful bidders after multiple rounds of bidding. Hyderabad’s franchise was the first to be auctioned, with several bidders participating before FKS Group from the United States (USA) emerged as the highest bidder.
A US-based aviation company successfully secured the acquisition of the Hyderabad franchise for $6.2 million (approximately INR 55-56 crore). The next franchise up for bidding was Sailkot, which also attracted multiple bidders before it was eventually sold to OZ Developers for $6.5 million approximately INR 59 crore), making it the eighth team in the expanded PSL lineup.
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The Sialkot franchise is the most valued PSL team at the 2026 auction, with its bid of $6.5 million, exceeding the franchise fees of some existing PSL teams, such as Quetta Gladiators, Peshawar Zalmi, and Islamabad United, whose values have historically been lower than the record Hyderabad and Sialkot bids.
The expansion of the Pakistan Super League with the addition of two new teams, making it an eight-team competition for the upcoming season in March this year, will witness Hyderabad and Sailkot joining the existing six teams, with the likelihood of an increase in the number of matches and creating new opportunities for players and fans alike.
PSL Expansion, Small Price Tags
Each of the new PSL teams was sold between 55 and 59 crore, which is almost identical to the big paychecks by IPL franchises Lucknow Super Giants and Punjab Kings to Rishabh Pant (27 crore) and Shreyas Iyer (26.75 crore) in the last season of the tournament. The combined salary of Pant and Iyer, INR 53.75 crore, is slightly less than the price of a new PSL franchise, highlighting how even top IPL players can earn nearly as much as an entire team in the expanding Pakistan league.
Additionally, in 2021, the Indian Premier League (IPL) expanded the tournament to a 10-team competition by adding two new franchises, Lucknow and Gujarat. However, the amount at which both franchises were sold was astronomically higher than the market value of the Pakistan Super League, which is $156 million as of 2025.
Lucknow franchise was sold to Sanjeev Goenka-owned RSGP Group for INR 7090 crore ($940 million), while CVC acquired the Gujarat franchise for INR 5,625 crore (around $745 million). Combining both amounts, the two new IPL franchises were sold over INR 12,700 crore (approximately $1.685 billion), dwarfing the combined $12.75 million sale of two new PSL teams, Hyderabad and Sailkot, and underscoring a massive financial gap between the two leagues.
The Pakistan Super League, despite its rapid growth in popularity and expansion to an eight-team competition for the 2026 season, still operates on a fraction of the IPL’s financial scale, with the franchises’ value and players’ salaries reflecting a smaller commercial market in Pakistan.
Sale of New PSL Franchises Falls Behind IPL 2026 Auction
At the IPL 2026 Auction, 10 franchises splurged a total of INR 215.45 crore on 77 players to fill the available slots ahead of the 19th edition of the tournament. Out of which, INR 118 crore were spent on the top nine players at the mini-auction, with Australian all-rounder Cameron Green getting sold for a whopping INR 25.2 crore to Kolkata Knight Riders, making him the most expensive overseas player in the history of IPL.
If 215.45 crore were spent on 77 players, averaging roughly INR 2.8 crore per player, it shows that mid-tier IPL players collectively commanded more than a single new PSL franchise. The combined INR 114 crore sale of Hyderabad and Sailkot at the PSL Franchise Auction is slightly lower than INR 118 crore spent by 10 IPL franchises on the top nine players at the mini-auction in December 2025, showing that even a handful of IPL stars can match the cost of an entire PSL franchise.
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The average amount spent on the acquisition of two new PSL franchises, which is between INR 56 crore and 59 crore, is lower than the combined INR 71.6 crore spent by Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings on the top four players at the IPL 2026 mini-auction. This highlights the vast difference in spending power between the two leagues, where a few marquee IPL players can cost an entire PSL franchise.
Though PSL has expanded the league by the addition of two new franchises, the league’s financial scale is much smaller than the market value of each IPL franchise, showing that even a single top IPL team is worth far more than an entire new PSL team.