Aditya Birla Group, Times of India consortium buy Royal Challengers Bengaluru in $1.78 billion deal; check details

Royal Challengers Bangalore has changed hands in the biggest sale of an Indian sports venture, with a consortium of top business houses and investors acquiring the Indian Premier League reigning champion for $1.78 billion, or approximately ₹16,600 crore.

Liquor giant United Spirits Ltd on Tuesday announced the sale of the franchise to a consortium of Aditya Birla Group, leading US sports investor David Blitzer, private equity giant Blackstone and Satyan Gajwani of the Times Group family office. While the Birla family will own the majority stake, Blackstone, Gajwani and and Blitzer's Bolt Investments will hold the rest. The consortium trounced several others pursuing one of the most valuable assets in Indian cricket for months, including bids by Ranjan Pai-KKR and EQT-Premji Invest.

For the paints-to-telcom Birla Group which has been looking to diversify, the Blitzer partnership eases an entry into sports, given the latter's expertise in the segment and ownership in multiple sporting leagues across continents. Aditya Birla Group director Aryaman Vikram Birla will serve as chairman and Gajwani as vice chairman of the franchise, the Birla Group said in a statement. The transaction sharpens United Spirits' focus on its core beverage alcohol business, managing director and chief executive Praveen Someshwar said.

Earlier in the day, PTI reported that a consortium led by US businessman Kal Somani has acquired Rajasthan Royals for $1.63 billion. The consortium includes Rob Walton from the Walmart family and Hamp family behind Ford Motor Co., the report said.

The announcement came even as vaccine tycoon Adar Poonawalla was considering a joint bid with steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal's family office, said two people with knowledge of the development, after Poonawalla's earlier bid was beaten.

United Spirits had acquired RCB under its original owner Vijay Mallya for $110 million in 2008. Diageo gained ownership of RCB after it took control of United Spirits in 2016, following the exit of Mallya. The liquor maker kicked off the RCB sale process late last year. While earlier rounds attracted expressions of interest, the binding-bids stage requires investors to commit capital, structure, and timelines.

USL’s stock closed at ₹1,331.50 on Tuesday, up 4.41% from Monday’s close on NSE. The market capitalization of the company stood at ₹96,846.7 crore. The deal was announced after market hours.

Diageo, which owns RCB through United Spirits, kicked off the sale process late last year, appointing global investment bank Citibank to manage the sale. The deal comes after RCB won its first IPL title last season, ending an 18-year wait and lifting both brand momentum and financial performance. The franchise posted revenue of ₹634.7 crore in FY24, while net profit swung to ₹221.8 crore from a loss a year earlier, according to filings.

Mint had earlier highlighted that IPL central revenue distributions are locked in under existing media rights contracts, offering predictable cash flows that initially drew interest from private equity firms.

According to PwC’s December report on Indian Entertainment & Media, the IPL has become a media-led business with locked-in revenues. The consulting firm said the IPL’s brand value crossed $10.7 billion in 2024, anchored by the ongoing 2023–27 broadcast and digital deal worth over ₹48,000 crore. PwC also projected India’s sports market to reach about ₹65,000 crore by 2029, growing at roughly 8–11% annually.

For Diageo, the sale offers a chance to monetize RCB at a time of high investor appetite and peak valuations.