The Hundred will launch a player auction and significantly increase salaries for the 2026 season, following private investment into the competition. Players were previously allocated to sides via a draft with a set of salary tiers, but will now have their team and pay set by an auction that will take place in March.

The salary pot in the men's competition will rise by 45% to £2.05m per side, while the fund for women's teams will increase by 100% to £880,000. The minimum salary for a female player also doubles to £15,000, while the number of overseas players permitted in both competitions increases from three to four.

The Hundred opened up to investment from private bidders in the summer, with the new owners taking control this month. "This is a hugely exciting time for The Hundred," said managing director Vikram Banerjee. "These changes will help us make the competition even better, ensuring we get the best players in the world and improving the standard of cricket and level of entertainment."

Auctions are a feature of a number of T20 franchise leagues, with the Indian Premier League holding one since its inception in 2008. Four of The Hundred's sides are now part-owned by groups that also control franchises in the IPL, with several expected to change their name in 2026 to mirror their overseas counterparts.

"Working alongside our new partners we've been exploring how we can take The Hundred forward and we've decided that moving to an auction will allow us to improve the competition," added Banerjee. "For a competition that has always been proud to innovate, we're delighted to be holding the first auction in major UK sport."

Teams will be able to sign four players in a window from mid-November to the end of January, with one allowed to be a retention of any member of a side's 2025 squad. The three remaining direct signings must be from overseas or England contracted players, and franchises will be able to offer multi-year contracts. However the right to match, an option that allowed sides to retain squad members by offering identical salaries if a player was drafted by another side, will no longer be a feature of the competition.

The move will likely see the settled squad of Oval Invincibles, who have won the men's competition in the last three seasons, broken up. Southern Brave, who enjoyed an unbeaten group stage in 2025, will also likely have significant changes, and captain Georgia Adams cast doubt upon an auction format in August, stating that "players want to have some say in where they go".

The sixth season of The Hundred will take place in July and August 2026, with an exact start date yet to be announced.