British company Diageo Plc is thinking about selling part or all of its ownership in the IPL chamoions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Bloomberg has reported. Diageo controls RCB through its Indian company, United Spirits Ltd.
The company may look for a deal worth up to $2 billion ( ₹17,000 crore), according to Bloomberg. Talks are still in the early stages, and no final decision has been made, the publication added.
LiveMint could not independently verify the development.
After news of the possible sale on June 10, United Spirits’ share price rose by 3.3% in BSE.
This comes as India’s health ministry pushes to stop the promotion of tobacco and alcohol through cricket. Although liquor ads are banned, companies like Diageo advertise soft drinks using top players.
RCB, one of the original IPL teams, were first owned by Vijay Mallya. Mallya, then chairman of United Breweries Group and United Spirits Limited (USL), purchased the RCB franchise in 2008 for $111.6 million during the inaugural IPL auction.
He was the face of the franchise until 2016, when legal and financial troubles, including unpaid loans, led to his exit from ownership. Then, Diageo took over the team in 2016.
RCB’s social media
Royal Challengers Bengaluru, which Virat Kohli has played for throughout his IPL career, earlier became the most followed IPL team on Instagram, crossing 18 million followers. However, since they won the IPL trophy after 18 years, their social media accounts further exploded. At the moment, they have nearly 22 million followers on Instagram.
They are ahead of Chennai Super Kings (18.8 million) and Mumbai Indians (18.4 million).
In November 2023, RCB were behind both teams but gained a quick rise due to strong fan support and creative online posts. RCB reached 17 million followers on in March 2024 and added another million in the same month.
RCB controversy
Nikhil Sosale, RCB’s Head of Marketing and Revenue, was arrested after the June 4 stampede at M Chinnaswamy Stadium that killed 11 people.
Sosale is one of several arrested after the tragic stampede during RCB’s IPL victory celebration. Sosale was picked up by the Central Crime Branch at 4:30 AM from the airport.
His lawyers told the Karnataka High Court that the arrest had been made under the direct order of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and not through a proper investigation.
However, the court said interim bail could not be granted unless it was proved that the arrest was unlawful.
