CVC Capital Partners, RPSG Group win bids to own two new IPL teams

Mumbai : Kolkata-based business tycoon Sanjiv Goenka's RPSG Group has won the bid for Lucknow franchise for a whopping Rs 7090 crore while international equity investment firm CVC Capital won the bid for Ahmedabad with a Rs 5600 crore offer, as the much-awaited IPL bidding took place in Dubai on Monday.

The T20 cricketing extravaganza will now witness ten teams competing for the coveted trophy when the league enters its 15th season next year. The two new teams will be from Lucknow and Ahmedabad.

The Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) earned a whooping Rs 12,690 crore from the two new franchises. "We're extremely happy that Indian cricket is growing forward. That is what is important for us. We look at Indian cricket and that's what our job is. The more Indian cricket prosperous, the better it is," BCCI president Sourav Ganguly said.

Goenka Group has been in the IPL for two years in 2016 and 2017 when he owned the Rising Pune Supergiants.

"Yes, RPSG had the highest bid while CVC had the second-highest bid at Rs 5600 crore. The BCCI stand to earn around $ 1. 70 billion from the deal," reported PTI citing a senior BCCI source.

The Governing Council of the IPL had issued the 'Invitation to Tender' ("ITT") document available on payment of the non-refundable tender fees on 31 August. But BCCI had later decided to extend the date for purchasing the ITT document till 10 October.

As many as 22 companies had picked up tender documents worth Rs 10 lakh when the BCCI opened the process this year. But with base price for new teams pegged at Rs 2000 crore, only five to six serious bidders entered the fray.