> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://the-state-of-play.ghost.io/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Royal Challengers Bengaluru attracts $1.8 billion bid as nine parties compete - URL: https://the-state-of-play.ghost.io/royal-challengers-bengaluru-bid/ - Published: 2026-02-06T12:00:51.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-20T13:53:42.000Z - Description: The State of Play can reveal the complete list of bidders for both franchises as RCB narrows the field and Rajasthan Royals move towards binding bids - Author: Venkat Ananth - Tags: Reportage, IPL, Franchise Valuations, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Rajasthan Royals, Diageo, Avram Glazer, Glazer Family, Adar Poonawalla, Ranjan Pai, KKR, Premji Invest, EQT, Satyan Gajwani, Sanjay Govil Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) won their second Women’s Premier League title, defeating Delhi Capitals on Thursday night, to become the first franchise to hold the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the WPL at the same time. RCB [chased 204](https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/smriti-mandhana-overcomes-flu-to-play-title-winning-innings-for-rcb-vs-dc-in-wpl-final-1522470?ref=the-state-of-play.ghost.io) through captain Smriti Mandhana’s heroic 87 (despite a high fever) and Australian batter Georgia Voll’s 79\. Away from the field, nine parties submitted non-binding bids ranging from $1 billion to $1.8 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. Rajasthan Royals have narrowed its field to five shortlisted parties, including Manchester United’s Glazer family. The non-binding bids (or R1) do not commit bidders to the prices submitted. RCB will use them to select a shortlist by next week, and then invite binding offers from the remaining parties. In some cases, consortiums are still forming, with people close to the process summing it up in as many words. “Everyone is talking to everyone.” The Rajasthan Royals have already moved past this stage and are working towards second-round or “R2” (binding bids) before entering exclusivity with one of its finalists. That process could happen in the first week of March. The Glazer family, through New Orleans-based Avram Glazer’s Lancer Capital, is among several bidders pursuing both franchises. Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) rules prohibit owning more than one team, so a bidder entering exclusivity talks with one franchise is expected to withdraw from the other. The Glazers’ bid for RCB is believed to be around $1.8 billion, according to people familiar with the matter, positioning them among the highest bidders for the franchise. Non-binding bids can shift substantially as parties move to binding offers and complete due diligence. The two sales are the first test of IPL valuations since the [league added](https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/ipl-2022-lucknow-and-ahmedabad-become-home-to-the-two-newest-ipl-franchises-1285125?ref=the-state-of-play.ghost.io) Lucknow Super Giants for about $940 million and Gujarat Titans for about $750 million in 2021\. The $800 million spread between RCB’s highest and lowest bids shows how differently bidders value the franchise’s growth and risks. Due diligence will determine whether those bids converge or move further apart. “Ultimately, the question is, who can deliver the biggest growth on these teams?” a person familiar with the process said. ## The nine RCB bidders RCB’s bidders include private equity firms, Indian family offices and owners of teams in other cricket leagues. As *The State of Play* [reported](https://the-state-of-play.ghost.io/rcb-rajasthan-royals-sale-ipl/) in January, Adar Poonawalla, whose family built a vaccine empire worth $25 billion (as of February 2025), is backed by TPG, the American private equity firm that manages $303 billion in assets. Dr Ranjan Pai, founder of Manipal Education and Medical Group (MEMG), was [reportedly in advanced talks](https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/diageo-s-usl-calls-for-rcb-bids-by-early-february-amid-suitor-frenzy-dr-ranjan-pai-in-advanced-talks-with-kkr-13795346.html?ref=the-state-of-play.ghost.io) with private equity firm KKR to form a consortium, with Temasek Holdings potentially joining, according to *Moneycontrol*. Temasek, the Singapore sovereign fund with a net portfolio value of $434 billion, already partners with Pai through Manipal Hospitals. Pai is considered among the frontrunners, along with the Glazers. Premji Invest has submitted a bid. The investment arm of Wipro founder Azim Premji manages approximately $15 billion and has historically stayed within technology and healthcare. Its presence in a cricket sale indicates a departure, though perhaps not a surprising one, given how Indian sport has begun attracting the kind of patient, institutional capital that Premji Invest represents. EQT, the Stockholm-based private equity giant with €267 billion ($258.17 billion) in assets, has been building a sports investment portfolio, [having acquired](https://eqtgroup.com/news/bpea-eqt-in-partnership-with-nord-anglia-education-to-acquire-img-academy-a-world-leading-sports-education-brand-2023-04-25?ref=the-state-of-play.ghost.io) the IMG Academy in 2023\. RCB would be among its first major entries into Indian sport. An RCB acquisition would take it beyond its usual technology and healthcare investments. *Moneycontrol* [was the first to report](https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/race-for-rcb-dr-ranjan-pai-adar-poonawalla-eqt-premji-invest-submit-non-binding-bids-13811659.html/amp?ref=the-state-of-play.ghost.io) Ranjan Pai, Poonawalla, EQT and Premji Invest’s non-binding bids. Sources told *The State of Play* that Capri Global, the non-banking financial company that already owns the WPL franchise UP Warriorz and the ILT20 franchise Sharjah Warriorz, is also in the running. The company manages over $3.6 billion in assets and has a sports portfolio through Capri Sports, which includes the Pro Kabaddi League franchise Bengal Warriors and the Ultimate Kho-Kho team Rajasthan Warriorz. “Capri could have an advantage going into the process, given that their existing presence in the BCCI ecosystem through their WPL franchise,” said a person familiar with the matter. Capri Global, Sanjay Govil, and representatives for the Glazer family did not respond to requests for comment by the time of publication. *The State of Play* first [reported](https://the-state-of-play.ghost.io/rcb-rajasthan-royals-sale-ipl/) on media conglomerate The Times of India Group’s interest in both franchises. The company has tabled an R1 (non-binding) bid for RCB, backed by some US-based family offices, sources said. Its digital arm, Times Internet Limited, owns the cricket media platform Cricbuzz and North American cricket broadcaster Willow TV. Times Internet vice-chairman Satyan Gajwani cofounded Major League Cricket in the US and [led a consortium](https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/sports/us-tech-consortium-led-by-satyan-gajwani-nikesh-arora-buys-49-stake-in-london-spirit-cricket-franchise-for-145-million/articleshow/117799833.cms?from=mdr&ref=stateofplay.club) that acquired a 49% stake in The Hundred’s London Spirit for £145 million ($194.6 million), making it the most valuable team in the competition. The London Spirit shares the same backroom staff as RCB, including Mo Bobat (Director of Cricket), Andy Flower (Head Coach), and the recently [appointed](https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/the-hundred-former-india-cricketer-dinesh-karthik-appointed-london-spirit-mentor-and-batting-coach-1515169?ref=the-state-of-play.ghost.io) Dinesh Karthik as mentor and batting coach. Sanjay Govil, who owns Major League Cricket’s Washington Freedom and previously founded Maryland-based software services firm Infinite Computer Solutions, is pursuing both franchises as seeks an IPL team in the Indian market. Govil, who also leads a healthtech company, Zyter TruCare, [acquired a 50% stake](https://www.washingtonfreedom.com/news/welsh-fire-secured-by-washington-freedom-owner-sanjay-govil?ref=the-state-of-play.ghost.io) in the Hundred franchise Welsh Fire for £33 million in early 2025. Avram Glazer, the executive co-chairman of Premier League club Manchester United and owner of the ILT20’s Desert Vipers via Lancer Capital, [unsuccessfully bid](https://www.thetimes.com/sport/cricket/article/glazers-fail-with-400m-bid-as-two-teams-are-added-to-indian-premier-league-7w76pd307?ref=the-state-of-play.ghost.io#:~:text=CRICKET-,Glazers%20fail%20with%20%C2%A3400m%20bid%20as%20two,added%20to%20Indian%20Premier%20League&text=The%20Glazer%20family%20suffered%20another,at%20an%20auction%20in%20Dubai) for both IPL expansion franchises in 2021\. “The Glazers have been eyeing the IPL for a long time. They even held talks with one of the original eight franchises to acquire them after the 2021 auctions,” according to a person aware of their interest. The Glazer family also owns the National Football League (NFL) franchise Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The ninth bidder could not be confirmed, even as the *Moneycontrol* report added that Blackstone was mulling a bid for RCB. ## Rajasthan's five shortlisted bidders The Rajasthan Royals process has progressed further. The franchise has shortlisted five bidders, including the Times of India Group, a consortium led by existing shareholder Kal Somani, Govil, Capri Global, and the Glazer family, multiple people confirmed to *The State of Play*. The Glazers, people familiar with developments said, were exploring a local partner for the Royals bid. “The BCCI is cautious about standalone foreign ownership since CVC’s acquisition of Gujarat Titans and would prefer a local partner,” the person added. The Scottsdale, Arizona-based Somani, who already holds a stake through the franchise’s general partner-limited partner ownership model and sits on Emerging Media Ventures’ board, has submitted an offer valued at $1.3 billion, *Bloomberg* [reported](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-28/cricket-team-rajasthan-royals-gets-1-3-billion-offer-in-test-for-ipl-valuations?ref=the-state-of-play.ghost.io). That bid, the report added, was contingent on future media rights outcomes. Bankers, as *The State of Play* reported, have been marketing a 60-90% growth in the next media rights cycle, based on a rise in the overall match count, or [even a proposed second “September window”](https://theleftfield.substack.com/p/a-fast-turn-in-the-ipl-sale) for IPL franchises. Industry executives, however, have a more sober view, pegging the actual figure at 10-20%, citing broadcaster consolidation and uncertainty over an expanded schedule. As we reported, the Rajasthan Royals’ own internal projections sit at 10-15%. The Royal Challengers Bengaluru is targeting a March 31 [deadline set by parent Diageo](https://www.espn.in/cricket/story/%5F/id/46859483/ipl-diageo-take-first-steps-towards-divesting-stake-rcb?ref=the-state-of-play.ghost.io) in its November exchange filing, which sources say should be complete by then, even if the transaction closes later in the year.