Even as Diageo India expects the buyers to queue up for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, one of IPL’s most valuable franchises, the road ahead doesn’t look smooth at the moment. Chinnaswamy Stadium, home of the franchise, is nestled in all sorts of trouble and is set to be overlooked for the 2026 T20 World Cup, months after the Maharaja Trophy and Women’s ODI World Cup matches were also not staged in the city. While the official venue list for the T20 World Cup is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council, it is understood that Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Ahmedabad have been shortlisted for the multi-nation event early next year.
RCB, a direct subsidy of Diageo India, is desperately looking to wriggle out of an ugly political storm in the aftermath of the stampede which happened outside the venue in June. The franchise won their first Indian Premier League title last season but the celebrations were marred by an unregulated crowd going out of control, leading to one of the most obnoxious incidents in India’s cricketing history.11 fans lost their lives and multiple were injured in the unfortunate incident on June 4. Ever since that day, high-profile cricket has stayed away from Bengaluru. The matter had snowballed into a war of words between the state’s political leaders and has forced RCB’s parent company to look for a buyer.In a communication to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on November 5, the UK-based company called it a “Strategic Review of the Investment in Royal Challengers Sports Pvt. Ltd. (RCSPL),” a wholly owned company of United Spirits Ltd., the Indian subsidiary of Diageo.In its disclosure, the company said, “USL is initiating a strategic review of the investment in its wholly owned subsidiary, RCSPL. RCSPL’s business comprises ownership of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) franchise teams that participate in the men’s Indian Premier League (IPL) and Women’s Premier League (WPL) cricket tournaments hosted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) annually.”Even though it has been indicated that a strategic review would be completed by the end of this financial year, it’s understood that RCB may push for an immediate sale of the franchise. The BCCI is likely to take necessary steps in the coming week and it’s further learnt that bankers have already been informed. As of now, JSW Group, Adar Poonawalla (of the Serum Institute of India) and Manipal Hospitals are in the race. Zerodha’s Nikhil Kamath’s name was also linked but it is learnt that he may not be directly involved at the moment.
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