The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have announced release of tender for the right to own and operate the a team in the inaugural Women's Indian Premier League (IPL) season later this year. The cricket governing body released a media statement on Tuesday, January 3 stating, 'The detailed terms and conditions governing the tender process including eligibility requirements, process for submissions of bids, proposed team’s rights and obligations, etc. are contained in the ‘Invitation to Tender’ (“ITT”) which will be made available on receipt of payment of a non-refundable fee of INR 5,00,000 (Rupees Five Lakhs Only) plus any applicable Goods and Services Tax. The procedure to procure the ITT documents is enlisted in Annexure A to this document. The ITT will be available for purchase till January 21, 2023." It further read, "Any interested party wishing to submit a bid is required to purchase the ITT. However, only those satisfying the eligibility criteria set out in the ITT and subject to the other terms and conditions set out therein, shall be eligible to bid. It is clarified that merely purchasing this ITT does not entitle any person to bid." Early last month, the BCCI had also floated the tender to invite media houses to bid for the broadcast rights of the competition that has been long in demand in Indian cricket. While talking about the competition, BCCI Secretary Jay Shah had said last summer, "We are in discussions with other Boards about the possible window when all top cricketers will be available. I can promise that the valuation of the league, franchises and media rights will stun one and all,”
