2 New IPL teams, record valuations go up on the scoreboard

2,000,000,000 dollars have suited up the IPL to be a 10-team affair again come 2022. RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group (Lucknow) and CVC Capital Partners (Ahmedabad) who will join the Indian Premier League as the new owners as they smash valuations to a record high.

The RP Sanjeev Goenka Group (RPSG) made the highest bid of ₹7,090 crore and chose Lucknow to be their home base. Singapore private equity firm Irelia Co. Pte Ltd, whose parent company is CVC Capital Partners, was the other successful bidder, with a bid of ₹5,625 crore. It chose Ahmedabad as its home city. The total kitty coming in topped ₹12,000 cr which is 3 times more than what the bid invite at Rs 2,000 cr aimed at.

Sanjeev Goenka, leading the new Lucknow IPL team believes that even at these valuations the team is a great investment bound to multiply in worth. The Chairman of the RPSG Group said, "In five years I expect it to be worth Rs 10,000 crore. The Rs 7000 crore valuation is to go up to Rs 10,000 crore. So, if I'm investing Rs 2,500 crore and in five years it becomes worth Rs 10,000 crore, that's a pretty good investment." The Kolkata-based businessman who earlier owned Rising Pune Supergiants is back in the IPL business after 4 years.

These numbers are big jump from the last set of valuations the IPL franchises commanded. Rajasthan Royals, the most valuable team before these new bids, is known to be worth ₹1,850 crore after adding a new investor—US-based RedBird Capital Partners—three months ago. Sunrisers Hyderabad paid ₹850 crore to join the IPL for five years in 2012.

Disclaimer: Editorji is part of RP-Sanjeev Goenka Group