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Adar Poonawalla adds fuel to fire as rumours of him buying Virat Kohli's RCB gather steam: 'At the right valuation...'
According to Houlihan Lokey's IPL Valuation Study 2025 report, RCB was the most valuable franchise this year.
Adar Poonawalla, the CEO of the Serum Institute of India, added fuel to the fire as he responded to rumours of him buying the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), one of the most popular Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises. According to CNBC-TV18, Poonawalla has already begun negotiations with Diageo Plc, the current owners of RCB, regarding the purchase of the franchise. However, it remains unclear whether Diageo Plc intends to sell all of its shares in RCB.
Speaking of Diageo Plc, the company owns United Sports. According to several reports, the British multinational alcoholic beverage business is seeking a valuation of USD 2 billion for RCB.
According to Houlihan Lokey's IPL Valuation Study 2025 report, RCB was the most valuable franchise this year, even in terms of business worth.
Poonawalla's latest post is now expected to spread like wildfire on social media, and with him showing interest, it is clear that there might be some truth to the current owners of RCB possibly wanting to test the waters.
“At the right valuation, @RCBTweets is a great team,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Lalit Modi's reaction
Earlier, the former IPL commissioner, Lalit Modi, had also posted about the possible sale of RCB, stating that the owners might have decided to remove the franchise from their balance sheet and sell it.
Modi then also shared the news article link about Virat Kohli's RCB exploring the sale of RCB to Poonawalla.
On Tuesday, he took to X and said, "There have been a lot of rumour about the sale of an @IPL franchise specifically @RCBTweets - well in the past they have been denied. But it seems the owners have finally decided to take it off their balance sheet and sell it. I am sure having won the IPL last season and also with its strong base of fans and of course the Team itself and a great management team - it could be the only Team which would be available as a whole as an #ipl franchise.”
According to CNBC-TV18, buyers are keen on acquiring the entire stake of RCB, not just a part of the franchise. Global investment bank Citi has been appointed as the transaction advisor.
When CNBC-TV18 contacted a Diageo spokesperson about the same, the response was, "We don’t comment on market speculation.”
Earlier this year, RCB won their maiden IPL title after beating Punjab Kings in the summit clash at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Following this victory, a large celebration was organised in Bengaluru. However, the situation soon turned grim as 11 people lost their lives in a stampede outside the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
