Shane Warne, the former Australia spinner, has said that after seeing the amount spent for two Indian Premier League (IPL) teams, one has to realize why cricket has become the second most popular sport in the world. Shane Warne said the sale of two new Indian Premier League teams only shows the rise in the popularity of cricket across the globe. Shane Warne also congratulated the BCCI after the windfall on Monday.
BCCI announced the following successful bidders for two new teams on Monday (subject to definitive documentation and other formalities being completed): RPSG Ventures Ltd. – Lucknow (for INR 7,090 crores) and Irelia Company Pte Ltd (CVC Capital Partners) – Ahmedabad (for INR 5,625 crores).
Shane Warne: Staggering Amounts Of Money For Each Of The 2 Teams Showing Why Cricket Has Become The 2nd Most Popular Big Sport
The new franchises will participate in IPL from the 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 seven home and seven away matches. Shane Warne was left amused after the two new teams of IPL went for a whopping price.
“Wow!Congratulations to both of the new franchise owners. Staggering amounts of money for each team & shows why cricket has become the 2nd most popular & biggest sport on the planet. $932 & $692 million dollars (USA). Well done to @SGanguly99 & everyone at the @BCCI on the @IPL,” tweeted Shane Warne.
Business tycoon Sanjiv Goenka and international equity investment firm Irelia Company Pte Limited (CVC Capital) shelled out a combined Rs 12,715 crore (approx $1.7 billion) to win the bids for two new IPL teams, a windfall that far exceeded BCCI’s expectations on Monday.
The BCCI was hoping for a cumulative bid in the range of Rs 10,000 crore but, to their surprise, earned Rs 7090 crore from Sanjiv Goenka’s RP-SG Group for the Lucknow franchise, while CVC capital forked out Rs 5625 crore for the Ahmedabad team. As a result, the two new sides will take part in the 2022 IPL.
Sourav Ganguly: Heartening To See Inclusion Of 2 New Franchises Which May Bring More Domestic Cricketers From India To Global Stage
Sanjiv Goenka was delighted to be back in the IPL and this time, as a full-time owner and not a temporary one, which was the case when he ran the Pune franchise (Rising Pune Supergiant(s) in IPL 2016 and 2017) during the spot-fixing-related suspension of CSK and Rajasthan Royals. Sourav Ganguly has said that the BCCI is not surprised by the bidding amount for the two new IPL teams, i.e. Lucknow and Ahmedabad.
BCCI President, Sourav Ganguly 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 Ltd & Irelia Company Pte Ltd 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 emphasizes the global appeal of the IPL as a sports property. The IPL is proving to be a wonderful instrument in globalizing the game of cricket. I am keenly looking forward to IPL 2022,” he added.
The companies that cleared the final round of technical vetting to be eligible to place the bids included RP-SG, the Adani Group, HT Media Private Limited, Torrent Pharma, Aurobindo Pharma, All Cargo, CVC, Kotak group in a consortium, and the Glazers of Manchester United through their equity firm.