Adar Poonawalla says he will put in a strong and competitive bid for RCB

Adar Poonawalla confirms he will submit a strong and competitive bid for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, following USL's strategic review of the IPL team

Adar Poonawalla, chief executive officer (CEO) of Serum Institute of India, said in an X post that he will put in a strong and competitive bid for United Spirits owned Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). The franchise won its maiden Indian Premier League (IPL) title in 2025. 

 

“Over the next few months, will be putting in a strong and competitive bid for RCB, one of the best teams in the IPL,” he wrote on X.

 

In November, United Spirits said in an exchange filing that it has begun to strategically review the investment in Royal Challengers Sports Private Limited (RCSPL), wholly owned subsidiary of the company. 

 

The filing said, “RCSPL’s business comprises ownership of the RCB franchise teams that participate in the IPL and WPL cricket tournaments hosted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) annually.” 

 

It added that it is expected the process will conclude by March 31, 2026. 

 

Praveen Someshwar, managing director & chief executive officer of United Spirits had also then said in the release “RCSPL has been a valuable and strategic asset for USL, however it’s non-core to our alcobev business. This step reinforces USL’s (United Spirit) & Diageo’s commitment to continue reviewing its India enterprise portfolio to enable sustained delivery of long-term value to all its stakeholders, while keeping RCSPL’s best interest in mind”.

 

Media reports had then said that the British multinational alcoholic beverage company is looking for around $2 billion in RCB’s valuation. 

 

Poonawalla had also said in a post on X earlier, “At the right valuation, RCB is a great team…” 

 

As per Houlihan Lokey, a global investment bank and financial services firm, RCB became the most valuable IPL brand, with an increase of 18.5 per cent to $269 million in its brand value in 2025 after the team won its first IPL title. Even in terms of business value, RCB is in the top position this year, Houlihan Lokey noted in its IPL Valuation Study 2025 report.