Hockey India League auction sets stage for most exciting season ever

World champions, Olympic gold medallists, hockey heroes, rising stars – they will all be up for auction tomorrow as six franchised teams go head to head as they try to secure the best team for the Hockey India League (HIL) in 2016.

Five-time world hockey player of the year Jamie Dwyer of Australia, Olympic gold medallists Moritz Furste and Tobias Hauke from Germany and India captain Sardar Singh will be among the 276 players who will be part of the HIL players' auction being held in New Delhi, India tomorrow (17 September).

Following three successful seasons, HIL’s fourth season promises to be even more exciting than before, with 135 of the auctioned players coming from India and another 141 will coming from overseas.

In addition to India’s top athletes and rising stars, teams will battle it out to secure players from around the world, from countries such as Australia, Belgium, Canada, England, Germany, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Scotland, South Africa and USA.

The six teams are limited to a total of 12 Indian players and eight overseas, however, this can depend on which players they retained from the previous season.

The teams taking part include the Jaypee Punjab Warriors; defending champions Ranchi Rays; Kalinga Lancers; Uttar Pradesh Wizards; Dabang Mumbai and the Delhi Waveriders.

Each team has a wage budget cap which will is determined by the amount they currently spend on retained players.

Apart from Australian superstar Jamie Dwyer, Germany’s Olympians and India captain Sardar Singh, other players who should attract a lot of interest are India internationalist Rupinder Pal Singh, South African Lloyd Norris-Jones and Australia’s Kieran Govers.

Many new players will also be available at the auction, giving rising stars the opportunity to test themselves against some of the best players in the world.

The most expensive player in HIL history was Belgium’s Tom Boon who sold for $103,000 USD. This year however, he will remain in Belgium as he looks to continue his preparations ahead of the Rio 2016 Olympics in his homeland.

For a full list of which players will be auctioned, visit the Hockey India League website by clicking here.

Keep up to date with all the live action from the Hockey India League Auction via these channels: