RPSG Group, CVC Capital Win 2 New IPL Teams; BCCI Bags 12K Cr

The two new Indian Premier League (IPL) clubs were won by RP Sanjeev Goenka (RPSG) Group and Irelia Company (CVC Capital Partners). The Lucknow franchise has been awarded to RPSG Group, while the Ahmedabad franchise has been awarded to CVC Capital. The sale of the two franchises netted the BCCI roughly Rs 12,715 crore.

The Lucknow franchise was won by RPSG for Rs 7090 crore, while the Ahmedabad franchise was won by Irelia Company Pte Ltd (CVC Capital Partners) for Rs 5625 crore. With an offer of Rs 5100 crore, the Adani Group nearly missed out on the Ahmedabad franchise.

Avashya Corporation, Capri Global, Torrent Sports Ventures, Hindustan Media Ventures, and Championship Cricket LLLC (Lancer Capital - Avram Glazer) all lost out in the bidding war, in addition to Adani. Each of these six bidders submitted a bid worth less than Rs 5000 crore.

Former India captain MS Dhoni's agency, Rhiti Sports, was disqualified. Adani Group, RP Sanjiv Goenka, Kotak, Torrent Pharma, Aurobindo Pharma, Lancer Capital (Avram Glazer, owner of Man United), and Naveen Jindal were among the 22 businesses that responded to the tender document.

The new franchises will participate in IPL from 2022 season onwards, subject to the bidders completing the post-bid formalities as specified in the ITT document. The IPL 2022 season will comprise ten teams and will have 74 matches, wherein each team will play 7 home and 7 away matches.

Sourav Ganguly, President, BCCI, said, "The BCCI is happy to welcome two new teams from the next season of the Indian Premier League. I would like to congratulate RPSG Ventures & Irelia Company for being successful bidders. The IPL will now go to two new cities in India, viz in Lucknow and Ahmedabad. It is heartening to see the inclusion of two new teams at such a high valuation, and it reiterates the cricketing and financial strength of our cricket ecosystem. True to IPL’s motto of ‘Where Talent Meets Opportunity’, the inclusion of two new teams will bring more domestic cricketers from our country to the global stage. The ITT process included two interested bidders from outside of India, which strongly emphasises the global appeal of the IPL as a sports property. The IPL is proving to be a wonderful instrument in globalising the game of cricket. I am keenly looking forward to IPL 2022.”

BCCI Secretary Jay Shah said, “It is a momentous day for all of us and I formally welcome RPSG Ventures Ltd. and Irelia Company Pte Ltd. into the IPL fold. We had promised that IPL will be bigger and better from the 15th season and with Lucknow and Ahmedabad, we will take the league to different parts of India. The IPL has established gold standards for leagues across the world and remains a premium event on the sporting calendar as it has grown rapidly in a short span. Despite numerous challenges posed by COVID-19, the 13th and 14th seasons were completed, and the bids prove that interested parties have faith in BCCI and its hosting capabilities. I am thrilled for the people of Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat as the long wait is over, and they will now have their own IPL team. My best wishes to the two new teams.”

IPL Chairman Brijesh Patel said, “The level of interest among the interested parties prove that IPL is among the most sought-after sporting leagues in the world. We had bids from different parts of the world and from parties with diverse portfolios wanting to make a foray into the world of sports. I extend my heartiest congratulations to RPSG Ventures and Irelia Company for securing the rights to operate the two teams. We had a wonderful 14th season and the 2022 season will see a new beginning.”

BCCI Treasurer Arun Singh Dhumal added, "The fact that winning bids were way above the base price set for the two new IPL franchises is a direct indication of the true value of the Indian Premier League. We received tremendous interest after the ITT was floated, with many conglomerates putting their hat into the ring. I congratulate RPSG Ventures and Irelia Company for placing the highest bids and winning the rights to own the IPL teams. I also thank all the bidders for showing faith in the BCCI and IPL. This is the start of an exciting chapter, and I can’t wait for the big auction to see how the new teams shape up.”

The minimum bid amount for two new teams was Rs 2000 crore. The average net worth as well as the average turnover of each bidder for the last three years must be at least Rs 3000 crore. In the case of a consortium bid, the average net worth and turnover for the last three years of each member of the consortium must be at least Rs 2500 crore.

Each prospective bidder was required to provide a bid security deposit of Rs 75 crore. The BCCI will return the bid security deposit to all unsuccessful Bidders without interest in such bidders. A bidder may bid for one or more of the new franchises/stadiums but will be granted rights in relation to one franchise or stadium.

Subject to the successful allotment of two new franchises, the IPL will comprise 10 teams and a minimum of 74 matches from the 2022 season onwards. Star India, which owns the IPL media rights, will have to pay a higher fee to the BCCI for the 2022 season, which is also the last and final season of the current media rights cycle. The BCCI is planning to auction the next cycle of IPL media rights early next year.

As per the agreement between BCCI and Star India, the board had received Rs 4086.87 crore of the media rights payment in the first year and will receive Rs 3065.15 crore each in the subsequent years. In September 2017, Star India had paid Rs 16347.5 crore to acquire IPL media rights for five years till 2022. For IPL 2022, Star might have to cough up an additional Rs 715.2 crore for the additional 14 matches, at Rs 51.08 crore per match. With a Rs 3065.15 crore payout for 60 games, Star is paying an estimated Rs 51.08 crore per game for the IPL.

The Governing Council of the IPL had issued an Invitation to Tender (“ITT”) to acquire the right to own and operate 2 (two) new franchises. Pursuant to the tender process, various interested parties submitted their bids for the new franchises. The bids were submitted by the authorised representatives of the interested parties at Dubai today.