Vijay Kiragandur, the owner of production behemoth Hombale Films and of Kantara fame, has emerged as a frontrunner to buy Royal Challengers Bengaluru, it is learnt. RevSportz understands that Sanjay Govil, an Indian-American businessman, is also in the race. Kiragandur, however, is said to be the favourites, and negotiations with Diageo, the current owner of RCB, have reached the final stages for the production house to at least buy a stake in the IPL franchise.
While Diageo hasn’t yet formally announced the sale of RCB, it communicated to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) last month about a ‘Strategic Review of the Investment Royal Challengers Sports Pvt Ltd (RCSPL)’. Its disclosure to the BSE added a comment from Praveen Someshwar, Managing Director & CEO, United Spirits Ltd, which said: “RCSPL has been a valuable and strategic asset for USL, however it’s non-core to our alcobev business. This step reinforces USL’s & 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.” It also mentioned that the “the process will conclude by March 31st, 2026”.
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Hombale Films has been RCB’s digital partner since 2023. Founded in 2012 by Kiragandur and Chaluve Gowda, the production house’s net worth has never been publicly disclosed.
Govil, the founder chairman of Infinite Computer Solutions, meanwhile, has already been into cricket big time. He owns Washington Freedom in Major League Cricket (MLC) and has a 49 per cent stake in Welsh Fire in The Hundred.
RCB are the reigning IPL champions, while they annexed the WPL title in 2024. So why is Diageo selling such a successful franchise, which is also a huge brand? On the face of it, the company wants to consolidate its focus on its core alcohol business, divesting from non-core sports assets. But scratch beneath the surface, and the team’s IPL victory parade last June turning tragic, with 11 lives lost and more than 50 people injured, might have played a part.
Diageo reportedly values RCB at around $2 billion.
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