CCI clears $1.7B buyout of Rajasthan Royals by Mittal-Poonawalla group
What's the deal? The Competition Commission of India has approved the acquisition of Rajasthan RoyalsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and its two overseas franchises by Westview CricketDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → Limited and Poonawalla SportsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and Fitness Private Limited. The transaction, announced on May 3 at an enterprise value of about $1.65 billion, buys out Mauritius-based EM Sporting HoldingsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →.
What changes? The Mittal family, through UK-registered Westview CricketDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, will hold around 75% of the franchise group; Adar Poonawalla will own about 18% through Poonawalla SportsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. Existing investors, including Manoj Badale, retain the remaining 7%.
The deal goes beyond the IPL team. EM Sporting Holdings is the holding company for Rajasthan Royals, which plays in the Indian Premier League, plus Paarl RoyalsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → in South Africa's SA20 and Barbados RoyalsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → in the Caribbean Premier League.
Why now? Rajasthan Royals began a process to sell a controlling stake in late 2025, appointing US investment bank Raine GroupDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → to advise. An earlier proposed $1.63 billion deal involving a consortium led by Kal Somani, with investors Rob Walton and Sheila Ford Hamp, did not complete before the Mittal-Poonawalla group announced its agreement.
From $67M to $1.65B. Rajasthan Royals was one of the IPL's original eight franchises, bought by Badale-led Emerging MediaDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → for $67 million at the league's 2008 launch. It won the inaugural season and later expanded into a multi-market franchise network.
What's next? The competition filing was submitted on July 30; the CCI sought more information in August before clearing the deal. The transaction still requires approvals from the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the IPL Governing Council, with completion targeted for the third quarter of 2026.
The signal: The deal underscores how IPL franchises have become high-value global assets, with the Royals' valuation climbing roughly 25-fold in under two decades. It also marks a shift from Badale's long-running majority ownership to control by two of India's wealthiest families.
Image credit: Rick212
