In a landmark moment for franchise cricket, Kal Somani-led Consortium has sealed the Rajasthan Royals sale in a record deal.
The Consortium happen to have the backing of Rob Walton of Walmart, has sealed the deal for a whopping price of $ 1.63 billion. They have purchased a 100% stake in the franchise, and the deal is expected to be closed after the 2026 IPL season.
Somani has headed businesses in the fields of sports technology, data privacy, AI governance, and education.
American businessman Rob Walton of the Walmart family and the Hamp family are in support of Somani.
Sheila Ford Hamp is descended from the Ford family, which owns a substantial portion of Ford Motor Company. Somani had previously invested in the Rajasthan Royals in 2021.
Somani’s association is 65 per cent of Rajasthan Royals, with the minority City Golf Club and being an early investor in TMRW sports and TGL Golf League.
Rajasthan Royals were the first team to win in the IPL in 2008 and have reached the final in IPL 2022. In November 2025, former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara was re-appointed as head coach of the franchise, adding his role as Director of Cricket.
After the trade of Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag was named as the captain ahead of the IPL 2026.
Previously, Sanjiv Goenka’s RPSG group had purchased Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) for $940 million in 2022. Although it is worth noting that Torrent Group purchased a 67% stake at Gujarat Titans for $575 million, which set the value of the franchise at $858 million.
The Rajasthan Royals Sale has been an record breaking deal for a limited time only, as the Royal Challengers Bengaluru is closer to joining their new owners.
The parties interested are a consortium of Blackstone, Aditya Birla Group, and David Blitzer, a Ranjan Pai-led Manipal Consortium (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Temasek) and a Swedish private equity firm EQT.
Diageo-owned United Spirits had set March 16 as the final day for interested parties to submit binding bids to acquire the franchise. It is understood that RCB have set a deadline for March 31 to complete the deal.
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