Nine investors showed interest. And ultimately, one consortium got hold of Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) IPL and WPL teams.
This came after RCB ended their trophy drought in the IPL in 2025. And obviously, the two WPL titles won by their women’s team in 2024 and 2026.
Those back-to-back titles shot RCB’s valuation up. And the United Spirits Limited (USL) wouldn’t have thought of a perfect time to exit from the team’s ownership.
But why did United Spirits Limited sell RCB?
See, USL, owned by Diageo, primarily operates in the beverage alcohol sector. Since RCB or cricket is outside of its core sector, the company wanted to sell its entire stake in the team.
USL operated the team under its subsidiary Royal Challengers Sports Private Limited. They purchased RCB back in 2008 for US$111.6 million.
Vijay Mallya owned the team back then through United Breweries Group before Diageo bought majority stakes in USL in 2012-13.
It was in 2015-16 when Mallya fully exited RCB and Diageo’s USL completed a full takeover. Then, in 2023, USL bought a women’s team in the WPL for INR 901 crore. And after 10 years, USL has sold its stake in RCB with handsome returns.
How much is the RCB deal worth?
So USL sold its 100 per cent stake to a consortium of four investors for US$ 1.78 billion. That’s 16,660 crore in Indian rupees!
If we take into account the 2008 price, then RCB’s valuation has gone up by roughly 37 times!
Who are the new RCB owners now?
Aditya Birla Group leads the consortium that now owns RCB. The consortium also involves The Times of India Group, David Blitzer’s Bolt Ventures and Blackstone’s BXPE.
Aryaman Birla, Aditya Birla Group’s Director, will serve as RCB’s chairman. Notably, Aryaman is a former Madhya Pradesh cricketer. And he also got a taste of the IPL with Rajasthan Royals, who have also seen ownership change, though he never made his league debut. Now here he is set to lead RCB’s business.
Satyan Gajwani, Times Internet chairman, will be RCB’s vice-chairman. Gajwani’s Times Internet has been involved in cricket through Cricbuzz. They also hold stakes in the USA’s Major League Cricket and the Hundred team, London Spirit.
Speaking of Blitzer’s Bolt Ventures, it has ownership in several sports teams. Some of his prominent investments are in Crystal Palace (English Premier League), the Philadelphia 76ers (NBA), New Jersey Devils (NHL), Washington Commanders (NFL), Cleveland Guardians (MLB) and Real Salt Lake (MLS).
Blackstone, meanwhile, is an asset management firm. They deal in real estate, infrastructure, equity, credit and hedge funds.
Will the new owners retain Royal Challengers Bengaluru name?
Most likely, yes. The franchise is more or less now associated with Royal Challengers Bengaluru or RCB name. So changing the name of the franchise may not be a good idea.
What’s in it for the BCCI?
The BCCI stands to benefit from the RCB’s sale. The Indian cricket board will earn five per cent of the deal as a mandatory transfer fee. So the board is set to add roughly US$89 million to its coffers.
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