Brands, franchises belt up for the IPL juggernaut

The 2-day player auction for the 2018 season kicks off on January 27 in Bengaluru with 8 teams, 1119 players and a purse worth Rs 800 million in the fray

With an increased purse size and a pool of 1000-plus players to choose from, the eight franchise owners are not going to be just bidding for the best players on the field over two days starting Saturday, January 27. They are also going to keep a keen eye out for maximising the potential brand valuation of their teams, bidding to ensure that sponsors line up for a piece of the action well before the first ball of the first match is bowled in April this year. And for Star India (now Disney), the event provides a pinhole view into the