The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have spent most of their existence as the IPL’s most talked-about underachievers. Now, barely months after finally winning the IPL in 2025 and following it up with a second WPL title, RCB find themselves at the center of one of the most competitive franchise sale processes Indian sport has ever seen. The current owners, Diageo, wanted a review of their holdings after winning the maiden tournament but it has now become a proper auction, with some of the world’s largest conglomerates battling to win the bid for the IPL 2025 champions.
Manchester United to buy RCB?
According to a report by State of Play, nine parties have submitted non-binding bids for RCB, ranging from $1 billion to $1.8 billion. Non-binding bids basically mean that neither the buyer nor seller is legally obligated to complete the transaction.
Among them, the most aggressive offer is believed to have come from the Glazer family, the owners of Manchester United, through Avram Glazer’s Lancer Capital. Their bid, pegged close to $1.8 billion, places them at the very top of the current valuation range. For those unaware, The Glazer’s Lancer Capital are already part of the cricketing ecosystem, with them holding the ownership of the Desert Vipers franchise in the ILT20, who are also the current champions of the tournament.
Also, in late 2021, the Glazer family made an unsuccessful attempt to enter the IPL during the auction for two new franchises. They submitted the lowest of the nine qualifying bids (₹4,128.65 crore) and lost out to the RPSG Group (Lucknow) and CVC Capital (Ahmedabad). Now, the Manchester United owners are more on the right page as far as a valuation of an IPL team is concerned.
Glazer’s bid of $1.8 billion, which is approximately INR 16,321 crore, places them at the top of the current bidding range but still below the $2.1 billion (over INR 1,800 crore) valuation that Diageo is understood to have set after RCB’s IPL 2025 title win.
As reported earlier, Diageo, via United Spirits, has already circulated confidential information memorandums to prospective buyers, with Citigroup acting as transaction advisor. That move confirmed that the franchise was no longer under review but actively up for sale. The expectation was that bids could approach the $2 billion mark, driven by RCB’s commercial strength, fanbase, and association with Virat Kohli.
Why Diageo is exiting and what buyers are weighing up
Why would Diageo sell RCB you may ask? Well, their decision to sell RCB is because of business priorities. United Spirits had informed SEBI in November that the franchise was being reviewed as a non-core asset outside its alcobev (alcohol beverages) focus. This decision also comes after the stampede that broke out when RCB celebrated their title win at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru last year. The incident that saw a number of deaths as well made Diageo feel concerned about potential damage to their reputation and possible legal issues.
Beyond the Glazers, the field shows how global capital is not wanting to miss a chance to enter the world’s second biggest sporting league. Adar Poonawalla is understood to be backed by private equity firm TPG, while Dr Ranjan Pai has explored a consortium involving KKR and potentially Temasek. Premji Invest and Sweden-based EQT have also entered the race.
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