Copyright startuppedia
"A day after Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) officially announced its sale, the media began speculating on potential buyers. Advertisment Zerodha boss planning to buy RCB? Nikhil Kamath, co-founder of Zerodha, Adar Poonawalla, CEO of Serum Institute of India and Ranjan Pai, chairman of the Manipal Education and Medical Group, are reportedly among the front-runners. Poonawalla had earlier hinted at interest in the RCB team. In a post on X dated October 1, he wrote: “At the right valuation, @RCBTweets is a great team…” According to The Times of India, any consortium bidding for the franchise would ideally include a figure with strong ties to Bengaluru to maintain a close connection with the passionate fanbase. Interestingly, Forbes lists Poonawalla"s net worth at over $20 billion, while Pai and Kamath are estimated at $2.8 billion and $2.5 billion, respectively. Also read: "We wanted to list while we"re still young and scaling fast": PhysicsWallah co-founder Prateek Maheshwari (startuppedia.in) RCB's valuation details RCB"s valuation, previously reported at over $1 billion in 2022, is expected to be significantly higher following their first IPL title in 18 years. A recent report by investment firm Houlihan Lokey states that the IPL"s overall business value was $18.5 billion and its brand value was $3.9 billion in 2025. Furthermore, RCB leads the pack with a brand value of $269 million, the highest among all ten franchises. Diageo, the franchise owner, has officially put Royal Challengers Bengaluru up for sale, six months after the team secured the first-ever Indian Premier League title. In an exchange filing sent to the exchanges on Wednesday, Diageo's Indian subsidiary, United Spirits Ltd. (USL), announced it is initiating a "Strategic Review" of its investment in its wholly-owned subsidiary, Royal Challengers Sports Pvt Ltd (RCSPL). The sports company expects the process to conclude by March 31, 2026. Startup Pedia earlier reported that Adar Poonawalla, CEO of Serum Institute of India, is planning to buy the team. At the right valuation, @RCBTweets is a great team… — Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) October 1, 2025 Also read: Elon Musk dances with Tesla"s humanoid robot Optimus, cheering shareholders approve staggering $1 trillion deal (startuppedia.in) "
