The owner of the Rajasthan Royals has invited four bidders to move forward in the auction for the Indian Premier League cricket team, including a consortium headed by Times Internet Chairman Satyan Gajwani and another supported by US entrepreneur Kal Somani.
A preliminary bid of $1.3 billion has been submitted by Somani’s consortium, which already has investments in the team, according to sources familiar with the situation. This bid hinges on the future success of IPL media rights, the sources indicated, preferring to remain anonymous due to the confidential nature of the information.
The auction for the Rajasthan Royals is seen as a significant measure of investor interest in premium cricket assets. Despite ongoing scrutiny of overall IPL valuations, bidders are optimistic about sustained long-term media growth and international market expansion that would support multibillion-dollar franchise valuations.
The Raine Group, the advisory firm managing the sale, initiated the process with a valuation floor set at approximately $1.1 billion, the sources revealed. The team is predominantly owned by Emerging Media Ventures, with minority stakes held by RedBird Capital Partners and Tiger Global.
Representatives from Times Internet and Raine declined to provide comments, while Somani did not respond to requests for his input.
Additionally, Blackstone Inc. and Carlyle Group Inc. have been considering acquiring a share in the Rajasthan team, as well as the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, as reported earlier by Bloomberg News.
Founded in 2008, the IPL operates for just eight weeks each spring, with 10 teams competing for the championship. The league employs a profit-sharing model similar to the National Football League (NFL) in the US, where franchises receive a share of revenues from media rights and sponsorships, distributed alongside the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Teams also earn revenue through merchandise and ticket sales.
Early investors are looking to divest their holdings. Last year, CVC Capital Partners Plc sold its majority stake in Gujarat Titans, valuing the franchise at roughly $800 million. Diageo Plc’s Indian arm, United Spirits Ltd., has started exploring options regarding its stake in Royal Challengers Sports Pvt. Ltd., the firm that owns the Royal Challengers Bengaluru team.
Times Internet has been broadening its global influence in cricket media and intellectual property, including prior investments by Gajwani in US-based Major League Cricket and England’s The Hundred tournament.
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Alphabet Inc. CEO Sundar Pichai, Palo Alto Networks Inc. CEO Nikesh Arora, Microsoft Corp. CEO Satya Nadella, Adobe Inc. CEO Shantanu Narayen, and Egon Durban, co-CEO of Silver Lake Management LLC, were part of the consortium that won the bid for London Spirit. It is unclear whether they are also involved in the bidding for the Rajasthan Royals.
