BBL & WBBL Draft 2025–26: Everything You Need to Know

The Big Bash League (BBL) and Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) drafts are set to take place this week, marking a crucial moment for both competitions. All eight teams in each league will lock in their overseas stars for the 2025-26 season, shaping the future of the leagues.
The BBL and WBBL drafts are exciting events for players and fans. This year’s draft will determine which overseas stars will participate in Australia's summer in the next season.
With big names, big money, and new rules, the 2025-26 season is shaping up to be one of the most exciting yet. Here is everything you need to know about how the drafts will work this year.

How Will BBL 2025-26 Draft Take Place?

The BBL and WBBL drafts will be held on Thursday, June 19. The WBBL 2025-26 draft will begin at 4 PM AEST. On the other hand, the BBL 2025-26 draft will happen straight after the WBBL draft ends. The draft order was decided in April by a weighted lottery. This means the teams with lower rankings last season had better chances of getting early picks. In the WBBL, the order for the first round is:

1. Sydney Sixers
2. Adelaide Strikers
3. Melbourne Stars
4. Perth Scorchers
5. Hobart Hurricanes
6. Sydney Thunder
7. Melbourne Renegades
8. Brisbane Heat

Meanwhile, in the BBL, the order for the first round is as follows:

1. Brisbane Heat
2. Adelaide Strikers
3. Melbourne Renegades
4. Perth Scorchers
5. Hobart Hurricanes
6. Sydney Sixers
7. Melbourne Stars
8. Sydney Thunder

There are four rounds in the draft.

• Round 1: Platinum players only
• Round 2: Platinum and Gold
• Round 3: Gold and Silver (goes in reverse order)
• Round 4: Silver and Bronze

One trade has already taken place in the BBL with Sydney Thunder and Perth Scorchers swapping their picks for Round 2 and Round 3.

Pre-Signed Overseas Players in BBL & WBBL

Every team must select at least two overseas players during the draft. They can pass in only one round. Each team can sign one overseas player before the draft, which started last season. These players are called pre-signed players. They can be signed on multi-year contracts.

During the draft, teams must say which round their pre-signed players belong to. This depends on their contract value. Some will be Platinum, but not all. For example, last year, Tim Seifert of Melbourne Renegades and Nadine de Klerk of Brisbane Heat were not Platinum picks.

Teams can also sign a fourth overseas player, but only as a replacement player since only three overseas players can play in one match. Replacement players must be chosen from the list of nominated players, unless special permission has been given by the tournament officials. Here is the list of pre-signed overseas players for each team. It includes players to participate in both the WBBL and the BBL.

• Adelaide Strikers: Laura Wolvaardt, Jamie Overton
• Brisbane Heat: Nadine de Klerk, Colin Munro
• Hobart Hurricanes: TBC, Chris Jordan
• Melbourne Renegades: Hayley Matthews, Tim Seifert
• Melbourne Stars: Marizanne Kapp, Tom Curran
• Perth Scorchers: Sophie Devine, Finn Allen
• Sydney Sixers: Amelia Kerr, Babar Azam
• Sydney Thunder: Chamari Athapaththu, Sam Billings

Many famous players from around the world have put their names forward for the BBL and WBBL Draft this season. Over 600 overseas players have registered their interest for the BBL and WBBL this season.
BBL Notable Nominations:

• Pakistan: Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Rizwan
• England: Jofra Archer, James Anderson, Zak Crawley, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Alex Hales, Dawid Malan, Jason Roy, Reece Topley
• New Zealand: Lockie Ferguson, Tim Southee, Kane Williamson (available for three games)
• Others: Shamar Joseph (West Indies), Mustafizur Rahman (Bangladesh), Kusal Perera (Sri Lanka)

WBBL Notable Nominations:

• India: Shikha Pandey, Yastika Bhatia, Jemimah Rodrigues
• West Indies: Deandra Dottin
• Pakistan: Fatima Sana
• England: Lauren Bell, Sophie Ecclestone, Heather Knight, Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Sophia Dunkley, Tammy Beaumont, Sarah Glenn, Alice Capsey, Maia Bouchier, Bess Heath
• South Africa: Shabnim Ismail, Chloe Tryon

WBBL, BBL 2025-26 Player Salaries

Player salaries in both WBBL and BBL are divided into four bands: Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze. The amount depends on availability and player status. It is to be noted that the salary prices are handed over to the Australian dollars.
WBBL Salary Bands:

• Platinum: AUD 110,000
• Gold: AUD 90,000
• Silver: AUD 65,000
• Bronze: Up to AUD 40,000

BBL Salary Bands:

• Platinum: $360,000 - AUD 420,000
• Gold: AUD 300,000
• Silver: AUD 200,000
• Bronze: Up to AUD 100,000

WBBL and BBL 2025-26 Schedule

Each club can use one retention pick. This means they can keep one of their players from last season. A player can be retained even if they did not play but were signed. However, once a team uses their pre-signed player in a particular round, they cannot use a retention pick in that same round.

• The WBBL will run from late October to early December 2025.
• The BBL will run from mid-December 2025 to late January 2026.

The exact WBBL and BBL 2025-26 schedules will be released in July. The Men’s Big Bash League competition will face tough competition and challenges from other leagues as the window clashes with other tournaments in the Middle East and South Africa.