Global investors, including Manchester United co-owner Avram Glazer, are exploring bids exceeding US$1 billion to acquire the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Rajasthan Royals franchises.
People tracking the process expect each bid to come close to, or even exceed, the combined value of the Lucknow and Ahmedabad IPL teams that the BCCI sold in 2021 for INR 12,715 crore, which was about USD 1.69 billion.
The shortlisted bidders for RCB include Lancer Capital, owned by the Glazers; Manipal Group, led by Ranjan Pai; Adar Poonawalla of the Serum Institute of India; Times of India Group; EQT Private Capital; Capri Global; US-based businessman Sanjay Govil; and the private equity firm Premji Invest. Govil also owns Washington Freedom in MLC and Welsh Fire in the Hundred.
For Rajasthan Royals, five bidders have made the shortlist. They include Lancer Capital, Capri Global, Arizona-based tech entrepreneur Kal Somani, Govil, and Times of India Group. State of Play first reported the development, and ESPNcricinfo has independently verified it. In addition to Lancer Capital, several interested parties are in talks with investors to form consortia. Somani, in fact, joined the Royals as an investor in 2021.
Sources say the estimated bid for RCB could range from $ 1.2 to $ 1.8 billion. For RR, the expected range is $1.2- $1.4 billion. These numbers reflect non-binding offers from the first round: RR in January and RCB on February 2. Both franchises have offered bidders the option to buy 100 percent.
Many bidders have chased an IPL entry for years. Capri Global and Lancer Capital also bid for the 2021 franchises. Lancer Capital owns Desert Vipers in ILT20. Capri Global owns Sharjah Warriorz in ILT20 and UP Warriorz in the WPL.
Diageo owns RCB, while Manoj Badale’s Emerging Media holds the majority stake in RR. Final bids for RR are expected in the first week of March. RCB’s final bid date should fall in February. The next round will check technical eligibility before the final decision. Owners will choose the winner, but the BCCI must ratify the sale and will receive 5 percent of the amount.
Raine Group is managing the RR process, while Citigroup is handling RCB. RCB and RR launched as original IPL teams in 2008. United Breweries Group acquired the Bengaluru team for $ 111.6 million. Emerging Media bought Royals for 67 million dollars, when one dollar was equal to INR 40.
In November filings to SEBI, Diageo said it had started a strategic review of its RCB investment and aimed to close the sale by March 31 this year. RR has seen several minority investors over time. In 2021, RedBird Capital Partners bought 15 percent.
The last major IPL stake sale involved Gujarat Titans. CVC Capital Partners bought the team in 2021 for INR 5625 crore. In 2025, Torrent Group bought a 67 percent stake for INR 5050 crore.
Leave a Comment