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Ahmedabad-based Torrent Group on Monday said it has completed the acquisition of a majority 67 per cent stake in IPL franchise Gujarat Titans ahead of the start of a new season of the popular T20 cricket league. Torrent’s purchase of 67 per cent in Gujarat Titans (Irelia Sports India Pvt Ltd) from Irelia Company Pte Ltd — currently fully owned by private equity fund CVC — has got all necessary approvals, including from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). “With the fulfilment of these conditions, the acquisition has now been successfully completed,” the healthcare and energy conglomerate said in a statement.
“As part of the transaction, Irelia, managed by funds advised by CVC, will continue to hold a substantial minority stake of 33 per cent, maintaining its association with the franchise.”
It, however, did not disclose financial details of the deal.
Torrent had on February 12 announced the signing of definitive agreements for the deal.
The acquisition to mark Torrent Group’s foray into India’s rapidly growing sports sector. It is the latest corporate to enter the lucrative and high visibility sporting event.
The upcoming season of IPL starts on March 22.
IPL currently has 10 teams, each named after a different city or region in the country. These are owned by a varied mix of large Indian conglomerates (Reliance Industries, JSW Group, GMR Group, RP Sanjiv Goenka Group), multinational companies (Diageo Plc through United Spirits), family offices of leading ultra-HNIs and even private equity investors (CVC Capital).
Richest Indian Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance owns Mumbai Indians while N Srinivasan and family of India Cements fame owns Chennai Super Kings. Sanjiv Goenka’s RPSG Group is the owner of Lucknow Super Giants while Delhi Capitals is owned by a joint venture of GRM Group Entities and JSW Group (50 per cent each).
Sunrisers Hyderabad is owned by the Sun Group, Royal Challengers Bangalore by United Spirits Ltd and Punjab Kings is owned by Mohit Burman (Dabur) (48 per cent), Ness Wadia (Wadia Group) 23 per cent, Preity Zinta (23 per cent) and Karan Paul (Apeejay Surrendra Group) (6 per cent).
Superstar Shahrukh Khan and his wife Gaur Khan’s Gauri Khan Family Trust (55 per cent) and Juhi Chawla and Jay Mehta’s Mehta Group (45 per cent) own Kolkata Knight Riders.
CVC Capital Partners had acquired Gujarat Titans franchise for Rs 5,600 crore in 2021. It was the second team to win the IPL in their first season.
“The Gujarat Titans, one of the youngest and most successful franchises in IPL history, will now benefit from Torrent’s extensive expertise in building and managing large-scale businesses. With a focus on strengthening team operations, fan engagement, and commercial growth, the acquisition sets the stage for an exciting future for the franchise,” Torrent said.
The acquisition, it said, underscores the conglomerate’s commitment to diversifying its business interests while supporting India’s booming sports ecosystem.
The IPL, one of the most-watched sporting events globally, continues to grow in stature, and Gujarat Titans remain at the forefront of this evolution, it said.
The foundation of Torrent Group was laid by UN Mehta as Torrent Pharma. Since then, the brothers Sudhir and Samir Mehta grew the pharma business and diversified into power and gas distribution sectors.
In recent years the group has announced its intention to expand into the electrical and diagnostic sectors in addition to the acquisition of Gujarat Titans. The Group market cap has compounded by 33 per cent per annum over the last five years and grown to about Rs 2 lakh crore.
CVC is a leading global private markets manager with about 200 billion euro of assets under management.
Established in 2022, Gujarat Titans is among the most exciting franchises in the Indian Premier League (IPL), which boasts a viewership of over 400 million annually and a global fan base exceeding one billion people. Led by Shubman Gill and coached by Ashish Nehra, the Titans made history by winning the IPL title in their debut season and finishing as runners-up the following year.
Gujarat Titans play at the world’s largest cricket stadium, the Narendra Modi Stadium, in Ahmedabad.
“With the completion of this transaction, Torrent Group is set to embark on an exciting journey with Gujarat Titans, further strengthening the franchise’s position as a powerhouse in Indian and global cricket,” the statement added.
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