Deadline day for RCB, RR new owners-hopefuls to submit bids before IPL 2026
by Koushik Narayanan · Inside Sport IndiaThe development in the process comes just 12 days before the start of IPL 2026, which is scheduled to begin from March 28 onwards
The day for parties to submit their bids to buy Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) has finally come. RCB’s current owners Diageo has put up the team for sale while RR, owned by Emerging Media Ventures led by Manoj Badale, is exploring a majority stake sale. The development in the process comes just 12 days before the start of IPL 2026, which is scheduled to begin from March 28 onwards.
Last day for parties to submit bids to buy RR, RCB
As per State of Play Club, the last day for interested parties to submit binding bids to acquire RR and RCB is March 16. 6 parties are in the line to bid to buy IPL 2025 champions RCB while there are 4 who are in fray to acquire majority stake in RR. Among the parties interested in buying RCB include EQT, Avram Glazer, Ranjan Pai and KKR, Adar Poonawalla, the Times of India Group, Premji Invest and Capri Global. As for RR, Aditya Birla Group along with Bolt Ventures, the Times of India Group, Capri Global, Avram Glazer and Kal Somani are in the running.
| Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) | Rajasthan Royals (RR) |
|---|---|
| EQT | Aditya Birla Group (with David Blitzer’s Bolt Ventures) |
| Avram Glazer (Lancer Capital) | Times of India Group |
| Ranjan Pai (with KKR + Temasek) | Capri Global |
| Adar Poonawalla (with TPG) | Avram Glazer (Lancer Capital) |
| Times of India Group | Kal Somani (with Rob Walton) |
| Others: Premji Invest, Capri Global | — |
On Sunday, reports claimed that former IPL chairman Lalit Modi has formed a consortium with Kal Somani to try and bid to acquire majority stake in RR. Talking specifically about RCB — their estimated value is around & 1.5-2 billion. Earlier, reports had suggested that Diageo wanted to sell RCB ahead of IPL 2026 as they were worried about the downfall in the brand’s value after Virat Kohli’s imminent exit, apart from the Bengaluru stampede which affected the franchise deeply.