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50 free Indian Premier League trivia questions with answers — trivia quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
The Indian Premier League turned a two-month Twenty20 tournament into the richest cricket competition on Earth, and its history is packed with the kind of detail that separates casual viewers from real fans. This quiz runs from the league's 2008 launch, when a Shane Warne-led side nobody rated won the first final off the last ball, through franchise terminations, a two-season suspension for two champions, and the 2022 expansion to ten teams. You will need to know who wore the first Orange Cap, which bowler's 32-wicket season still stands as the benchmark, and which franchise only lifted its first trophy in 2025 after three losing finals. There are questions on the owners, the stadiums, the title sponsors and the odd rules that make the IPL different from every other league, including strategic time-outs and the impact player. Fifty questions, four options each, with a short explanation after every answer. The easy ones reward anyone who watches each spring; the expert ones are for people who remember the 2008 auction prices.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01Which governing body organises the IPL?
BCCI
The Board of Control for Cricket in India launched the league in 2007 partly in response to the rival, unsanctioned Indian Cricket League.
Q 02Which format is played in the IPL?
Twenty20
Each side gets 20 overs, which keeps a match to roughly three hours and fits the league into a March-to-May window.
Q 03In which year was the first IPL season played?
2008
The league was announced in September 2007 and the eight founding franchises were auctioned in January 2008, just months before the first ball.
Q 04How many franchise teams have played in each IPL season since 2022?
10
The league began with eight sides and reached ten in 2022 when the Lucknow and Gujarat franchises joined.
Q 05Which team won the inaugural IPL season in 2008?
Rajasthan Royals
The Jaipur franchise had been written off before the season and was one of the cheapest teams at the ownership auction.
Q 06Which Australian leg-spinner captained the 2008 IPL champions?
Shane Warne
He had retired from international cricket a year earlier and acted as both captain and coach of the side.
Q 07Which IPL team is co-owned by Shah Rukh Khan?
Kolkata Knight Riders
His company Red Chillies Entertainment bought the franchise for $75.09 million at the 2008 auction, with Juhi Chawla and Jay Mehta as partners.
Q 08Which stadium is the home ground of KKR?
Eden Gardens
The Kolkata ground is one of the largest cricket stadiums in the world and the team's purple-and-gold colours fill it every home game.
Q 09The name of the Kolkata IPL franchise references which 1980s American TV series?
Knight Rider
The team's logo is a blazing Corinthian helmet, and its motto Korbo, Lorbo, Jeetbo means Perform, Fight, Win.
Q 10Which batter is the IPL's all-time leading run-scorer?
Virat Kohli
He was signed as an under-19 World Cup-winning captain in 2008 and has played for the Bengaluru franchise ever since.
Q 11Which franchise won its first IPL title only in 2025, after three losing finals?
Royal Challengers Bengaluru
The side had lost finals in 2009, 2011 and 2016 before finally lifting the trophy, then retained it the following year.
Q 12Which two franchises have won five IPL titles each?
CSK and MI
Chennai won in 2010, 2011, 2018, 2021 and 2023; Mumbai in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020.
Q 13Which conglomerate owns the Mumbai Indians?
Reliance Industries
Mukesh Ambani's company paid $111.9 million for the franchise in 2008, the highest price of the original eight.
Q 21The IPL's Purple Cap goes to which player each season?
Leading wicket-taker
It was introduced a few weeks after the Orange Cap in 2008; ties are settled by the better economy rate.
Q 22Who was the first winner of the Orange Cap?
Shaun Marsh
The Australian opener top-scored for Kings XI Punjab in 2008, while McCullum had only worn the cap first after his 158 in the opening match.
Q 23Who has won the Orange Cap three times?
David Warner
All three of his wins came with Sunrisers Hyderabad, in 2015, 2017 and 2019.
Q 14Which ground is the primary home of the Mumbai Indians?
Wankhede Stadium
The IPL's own headquarters sit next door in the Cricket Centre at Churchgate.
Q 15Which real estate developer was the IPL's first title sponsor?
DLF
The deal ran for five seasons, after which PepsiCo took over the naming rights.
Q 16Which Chinese smartphone brand took over IPL title sponsorship after PepsiCo quit in 2015?
Vivo
PepsiCo walked away two years early after two franchises were suspended; the phone maker later paid ₹2,199 crore to keep the rights for 2018-22.
Q 17How long is each strategic time-out in an IPL innings?
2.5 minutes
When the break debuted in 2009 it was a single seven-and-a-half-minute stoppage, which players including Sachin Tendulkar complained about.
Q 18The 2009 IPL season was relocated to which country?
South Africa
The Indian government could not guarantee security because central forces were committed to the general election.
Q 19Due to COVID-19, the 2020 IPL was played in which country?
UAE
The tournament ran in September-November rather than its usual spring slot, with Mumbai Indians winning the final in Dubai.
Q 20The IPL's Orange Cap is awarded to which player each season?
Highest run-scorer
The current leader wears the cap in the field while the season is live, so it can change heads several times.
Q 24The record for most runs in a single IPL season, 973, was set in which year?
2016
That season ended with RCB losing the final to Sunrisers Hyderabad by eight runs.
Q 25Who took a then-record 32 wickets in the 2013 IPL season?
Dwayne Bravo
Harshal Patel matched the tally in 2021, but the West Indian keeps top billing on economy rate.
Q 26Who is the only overseas player to have won the IPL Emerging Player award?
Mustafizur Rahman
The left-armer's cutters helped Sunrisers Hyderabad to their title that year.
Q 27Who has won the IPL Most Valuable Player award a record three times?
Sunil Narine
The points system rewards dot balls and wickets as well as boundaries, which suits a miserly spinner who also opens the batting.
Q 28Who was the most expensive buy at the first IPL player auction in 2008?
MS Dhoni
Chennai outbid everyone for the India captain; Tendulkar and Ganguly never went to auction because they were icon players for their home cities.
Q 29What was the winning bid for MS Dhoni at the 2008 auction?
US$1.5 million
Each team had only a $5 million salary cap that year, so the bid was nearly a third of Chennai's entire budget.
Q 30For how many seasons were CSK and RR suspended from the IPL in 2016?
Two
The Supreme Court-appointed Lodha Committee handed down the ban; both teams returned in 2018 and Chennai won the title that year.