The next edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will have two new teams as RPSG Group and CVC Capital Partners have won the bidding. The two new teams will be from Ahmedabad and Lucknow.
“The new franchises will participate in IPL from 2022 season onwards subject to the bidders completing the post-bid formalities as specified in the ITT document. The IPL 2022 season will comprise ten teams and will have 74 matches, wherein each team will play seven home and seven away matches,” said a release by BCCI.
The RPSG Ventures Ltd. were awarded Lucknow as their home base with a winning bid of a whopping Rs 7,090 crore. CVC Capital Partners took Ahmedabad as its home base with a second-highest bid of Rs 5,625 crore.
BCCI President Sourav Ganguly expressed his happiness in welcoming two new teams to the IPL fold. “The BCCI is happy to welcome two new teams from the next season of the Indian Premier League. I would like to congratulate RPSG Ventures Ltd. & Irelia Company Pte Ltd for being the successful bidders. The IPL will now go to two new cities in India viz in Lucknow and Ahmedabad. It is heartening to see the inclusion of two new teams at such a high valuation, and it reiterates the cricketing and financial strength of our cricket ecosys”em.”
“True to IPL’s motto of ‘Where Talent Meets Opportunity’, the inclusion of two new teams will bring more domestic cricketers from our country to the global stage. The ITT process included two interested bidders from outside of India, which strongly emphasises the global appeal of the IPL as a sports property. The IPL is proving to be a wonderful instrument in globalising the game of cricket. I am keenly looking forward to IPL 2022.”
The ten parties who were in fray were- RPSG Group, CVC Capital Partners, Adani Group, Kotak, All Cargo Logistics, Capri Global, Lancer Capital, Avram Glazer, Hindustan Media Ventures Limited, and Torrent Sports Ventures Pvt Ltd. While six centers that were available were- Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Cuttack, Dharamsala, Guwahati, and Indore — to make their home base.
“It is a momentous day for all of us and I formally welcome RPSG Ventures Ltd. and Irelia Company Pte Ltd. into the IPL fold. We had promised that IPL will be bigger and better from the 15th season and with Lucknow and Ahmedabad, we will take the league to different parts of India. The IPL has established gold standards for leagues across the world and remains a premium event on the sporting calendar as it has grown rapidly in a short span. Despite numerous challenges posed by Covid-19, the 13th and 14th seasons were completed, and the bids prove that interested parties have faith in BCCI and its hosting capabilities. I am thrilled for the people of Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat as the long wait is over and they will now have their own IPL team. My best wishes to the two “ew teams,” said BCCI Secretary Jay Shah.
