Blackstone is making its first pro sports bet on cricket as part of a group that has agreed to buy Royal Challengers Bengaluru—the reigning Indian Premier League champion—in a deal valuing the franchise at $1.78 billion.
The deal encompasses both the men’s and women’s RCB teams; the men’s team plays in the IPL, which is the world’s biggest cricket league, while the women’s team plays in the Women’s Premier League. The buying consortium also includes Aditya Birla Group, The Times of India Group, and David Blitzer’s Bolt Ventures. Blackstone’s investment comes through an Asia-focused fund managed by an affiliate called BXPE. Aditya Birla Group director Aryaman Vikram Birla will be chairman of the franchise.
The men’s RCB team is one of the original eight IPL teams—there are now ten—and won the championship last year. The 2026 IPL season begins in just a few days, kicking off March 28. The women’s team just won the 2026 WPL title in February, and it was also the league champion in 2024.
Blitzer, chairman of Blackstone’s tactical opportunities group, is a well-known sports investor. Through Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, he, alongside Josh Harris, owns teams including the NHL’s Devils and NBA’s 76ers. In his personal capacity, Blitzer owns minority stakes in MLB’s Guardians, the NFL’s Commanders, and more.
The seller is United Spirits Limited, an India-based subsidiary of London-headquartered alcohol giant Diageo PLC.
Blackstone’s entry into pro sports makes it the latest private-equity giant to tap into the asset class. PE peers like Apollo Global Management, CVC Capital Partners, and Ares Management have all formed dedicated sports divisions.
The firm—which has more than $1 trillion in assets under management—has considered sports in the past. Blackstone was part of a consortium that represented one of four NFL-approved buyers under the league’s policy allowing specific private-equity investors to buy up to 10% of an individual team’s equity—however, it quietly stepped back in May.
While the deal marks its first pro team investment, Blackstone has been involved in the sports ecosystem before—in 2014, it invested in licensed children’s sports apparel company Outerstuff, and in 2019, it invested in Romanian sports betting company Superbet.
Why Did an Alcohol Company Own a Cricket Team?
Diageo revealed that United Spirits was considering a sale of RCB in November. Diageo had inherited the cricket franchise in 2012, when it acquired a majority stake in United Spirits from United Breweries, a brewing company owned by entrepreneur Vijay Mallya.
Mallya was declared a “fugitive economic offender” by India in 2019 over allegations of fraud and money laundering. He has said the reason he originally bought RCB was to promote a whiskey brand, not due to any love of the sport. United Spirits paid a little over $111 million for the expansion franchise in 2008.
For the 2024–25 financial year, RCB posted revenue of $53.7 million (5.04 billion rupees), which represented only 1.9% of Diageo’s total revenue for the year, according to a regulatory filing.
Investing in Cricket
Cricket, and the IPL in particular, has drawn the attention of investors across the world in recent years. Blackstone is not the first PE firm to get involved. CVC Capital purchased the Gujarat Titans in 2021—it sold a majority stake in the team last year to Indian conglomerate Torrent Group but retained a 33% stake.
Matthew Wheeler, CEO of A&W Capital—which advised the buying group on the RCB deal—tells Front Office Sports there has been “a lot of interest, from both global and American investors.”
“CVC coming in was the big ‘wow’ moment,” Wheeler says.
In addition to A&W, Moelis & Co. and Khaitan & Co advised the buyers, while Citi India and AZB & Partners advised United Spirits. Diageo was advised by Deutsche Bank, Slaughter and May, and Touchstone Partners.
Cricket is considered the second-most popular sport in the world behind soccer, and the IPL is not the only cricket league trying to capitalize on the sport. In the U.S., Major League Cricket completed its third season last year. Team owners include Kunal Nayyar of The Big Bang Theory, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, and Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen.
Last summer, Anand Rajaraman—principal owner of MLC’s San Francisco Unicorns—told FOS that the league recognizes it’s an uphill battle to gain a foothold in a competitive market for sports leagues, but those involved are committed for the long haul.
“It’s going to be a long road that demands patience and investment from us,” he said. “But look at the WNBA, for example. It took them about 25 years in the wilderness before it got where it is today.”
