With the 2026 edition of The Hundred complete, PCA Director of Cricket Operations Rich Hudson discusses how players have responded to the competition and what changes they should expect to see for next year’s tournament.
This season’s Hundred was the beginning of a new era for both teams and players, with the introduction of private investment and the first ever Hundred auction significantly altering the competition.
While an initial ECB survey has found the 2026 competition to be well-received by players, there are still areas for improvement and the PCA is continuing to work with the ECB to address these.
Following the new-look squads for 2026, teams will be able to retain up to 16 players during a ‘retention window’, the dates of which are still being confirmed by the ECB.
Players signed in the main auction in 2026 can be retained on the same terms and salary going into 2027. This is part of their ‘1+1+1’ contracts, which allow teams to retain a player every year for up to three years, ending as soon as the contract is not renewed. There is no obligation for franchises to retain players on these contracts, however.
Players recruited via the Wildcard draft will need to re-negotiate terms and conditions if they are to resign for the same team.
For those players who are not retained, the sign-up process for the main auction will open in early 2027, with the auction anticipated around February. This is set to be a far smaller auction than in 2026, with release-rates varying from team to team, likely based on this year’s performances.
The Wildcard draft will evolve too and is currently under review. The process is already set to include only domestic players in next year’s edition.
Any team that releases or loses one of their direct signings will be able to replace them in a ‘replacement window’, planned to open in early January.
Another update to how sides can be structured is the introduction of a fifth overseas player to assist with injury coverage and squad depth.
The matchday playing limit will remain at four overseas players, however, and the salary caps for both men’s and women’s teams will increase by 2.8% to allow for the added overseas talent. This budget increase is flexible across the entire squad and can be used on both domestic and overseas players.
The PCA is continuing to work in the best interests of domestic players and is currently involved in exploratory discussions with the ECB over easing the mechanism for unselected players to be released back to their counties to play 50-over cricket during the tournament.
There will be continued updates as these talks develop as the PCA works towards making it easier for unselected players to get back to their counties and return to competitive cricket.
With The Hundred constantly evolving, the PCA is always keen to hear the views of our players.
You can find our contact details below, or feel free to speak to any member of staff in-person to feedback on your experience.
