Lakshmi Mittal and Aditya Mittal, alongside Adar Poonawalla, have acquired the IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals (RR) for $1.65 billion. The Mittal family will have about 75% ownership and Poonawalla will have 18% while existing investors including Manoj Badale will retain the remaining 7%.
In a joint statement, the group said it had submitted a fully funded bid and remained prepared to close the transaction, pushing back against what it described as “stories… planted in the press” suggesting otherwise. The consortium added that it had completed documentation and was led to believe that approval would be granted at a franchise board meeting, which ultimately did not materialise.
The investors said they found it “difficult to reconcile” the strength of their bid with the final outcome, adding that they did not believe the process reflected a level playing field. While respecting competitive outcomes, the group stressed that transactions of such significance should be conducted with “transparency, consistency, integrity”.
They highlighted that it had brought together investors with experience across major global leagues including the NFL, MLB, EPL and La Liga, along with prominent figures from professional sport. It said the bid was driven by a broader ambition to help scale the Indian Premier League internationally.
Despite the setback, the group said it would continue to pursue opportunities in global sport and deploy capital elsewhere.
The development comes amid heightened investor interest in IPL franchises, which have seen soaring valuations driven by media rights growth, expanding global audiences and increasing institutional participation. Rajasthan Royals, one of the original IPL teams, has previously attracted strategic investments and is often viewed as a key asset in the league’s evolving ownership landscape.
First Published: May 5, 2026 12:48 PM IST
