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What is the story about?
A consortium led by Kal Somani, Rob Walton, Jordan Walton and Michael Hamp on May 5 said it was “deeply disappointed” after failing to secure a stake in Indian Premier League franchise Rajasthan Royals, despite being the lead bidder through much of the six-month process.
Billionaire family of Lakshmi Mittal and Adar Poonawalla bought the team in a $1.65 billion deal with the Mittal family set to have about 75% ownership and Poonawalla to have 18%. Existing investors includine Manoj Badale will retain the remaining 7%.
In a joint statement, Somani, the US-based entrepreneur and his group said it had submitted a fully-funded bid and remained prepared to close the transaction, pushing back against what it described as “stories… planted in the press” suggesting otherwise.
"While this outcome is both surprising and disappointing, we view this experience as part of a broader journey," they said in a statement, wishing Rajasthan Royals success.
The consortium added that it had completed documentation and was led to believe that approval would be granted at a franchise board meeting, which ultimately did not materialise.
The investors said they found it “difficult to reconcile” the strength of their bid with the final outcome, adding that they did not believe the process reflected a level playing field. While respecting competitive outcomes, the group stressed that transactions of such significance should be conducted with “transparency, consistency, integrity”.
They highlighted that it had brought together investors with experience across major global leagues including the NFL, MLB, EPL and La Liga, along with prominent figures from professional sport. It said the bid was driven by a broader ambition to help scale the Indian Premier League internationally.
Despite the setback, the group said it would continue to pursue opportunities in global sport and deploy capital elsewhere.
Billionaire family of Lakshmi Mittal and Adar Poonawalla bought the team in a $1.65 billion deal with the Mittal family set to have about 75% ownership and Poonawalla to have 18%. Existing investors includine Manoj Badale will retain the remaining 7%.
In a joint statement, Somani, the US-based entrepreneur and his group said it had submitted a fully-funded bid and remained prepared to close the transaction, pushing back against what it described as “stories… planted in the press” suggesting otherwise.
"While this outcome is both surprising and disappointing, we view this experience as part of a broader journey," they said in a statement, wishing Rajasthan Royals success.
The consortium added that it had completed documentation and was led to believe that approval would be granted at a franchise board meeting, which ultimately did not materialise.
The investors said they found it “difficult to reconcile” the strength of their bid with the final outcome, adding that they did not believe the process reflected a level playing field. While respecting competitive outcomes, the group stressed that transactions of such significance should be conducted with “transparency, consistency, integrity”.
They highlighted that it had brought together investors with experience across major global leagues including the NFL, MLB, EPL and La Liga, along with prominent figures from professional sport. It said the bid was driven by a broader ambition to help scale the Indian Premier League internationally.
Despite the setback, the group said it would continue to pursue opportunities in global sport and deploy capital elsewhere.
