Who’s buying RCB? Owners enter active sale talks as multiple bidders emerge

RCB up for sale: Six bidders in line and all you need to know. (Photo: RCB)

The Royal Challengers Bengaluru's owners, Diageo Great Britain, have started official talks to sell the IPL team. At a price of almost $2 billion, they have begun interacting with investment banks and receiving interest from at least six possible purchasers, according to Cricbuzz.

The sale will be managed by Citi and other advisors, according to the British spirit giant, which owns RCB through its Indian subsidiary United Spirits. The action was taken months after RCB defeated the Punjab Kings in the summit match to win their first IPL championship in June 2025.

Adar Poonawalla, CEO of the Serum Institute of India, Parth Jindal, representing the JSW group, the Adani group, a Delhi-based entrepreneur with interests in multiple sectors, and two US private equity firms are among the interested parties, according to the Cricbuzz report.

On social media site X, Poonawalla openly expressed his interest in RCB, saying that the club is a "great team...at the right valuation." According to market sources, he might be working with an American fund.

Given that Parth Jindal and GMR Group now own 50% of the Delhi Capitals, there are obstacles to JSW Group's prospective purchase. In order to adhere to the BCCI's cross-ownership rules, JSW will have to completely leave the Delhi Capitals in order to make any offer for RCB.

Adani Group has long aimed to buy an IPL franchise; in 2022, it made a bid for the Gujarat Titans. The firm already owns assets in the UAE's ILT20 and runs the Gujarat Giants in the Women's Premier League.

Additionally, according to the report, Diageo's operations in India are allegedly opposed to the sale, causing internal strife. But there have also been reports of officials visiting the UK for talks. The timing is made more unpredictable by the conflict between the local market and headquarters.

"RCB is an exciting business, but is non-core for Diageo," stated Praveen Someshwar, MD and CEO of Diageo India, in a recent statement to CNBC-TV18, indicating the company's strategic intention to divest.

The IPL's media rights trajectory serves as the main justification for the pricing. The combined JioHotstar platform has more than 500 million users, according to Cricbuzz. According to industry estimates, even a hypothetical four-month IPL add-on at Rs 100/month could bring in over Rs 20,000 crore in subscription revenue annually, before advertising money. The 2027 auction is anticipated to set new records, with the current IPL media rights cycle valued at almost $6.3 billion.