Somani Consortium Disappointed After Missing Rajasthan Royals Deal Worth ₹15,660 Crore

Two days after Lakshmi Mittal and Adar Poonawalla completed their ₹15,660 crore takeover of the Rajasthan Royals, former bidders Kal Somani, Rob and Jordan Walton, and Michael Hamp released a statement about the matter. Initially, Somani’s consortium was closing in on signing a deal before negotiations fell through.

Somani consortium expresses disappointment after missing out on Rajasthan Royals takeover

Somani’s consortium has claimed that they are deeply disappointed by not being a part of the RR leadership group despite working tirelessly to assemble a group of investors.

“We are deeply disappointed not to be part of the Rajasthan Royals ownership group, following a long six-month process in which we were the lead bid from start to finish. Our consortium worked tirelessly to assemble a distinguished group of investors, with ownership experience across the NFL, MLB, EPL, La Liga and TGL. Included in the group were select global superstars from the top tiers of professional sports. We were all motivated by the opportunity to help take the IPL to new international heights. Throughout the process, we were the strongest group at every stage, competing against some of the most prominent investors across the sports investing landscape. Contrary to stories that have been planted in the press, our group was and has always been fully funded, prepared to close with certainty, and never withdrew our bid. We had executed documentation in place and were told that the franchise’s board meeting on Saturday was held to approve our consortium. In the end this was never the case. We approached this process with the highest standards of honesty, integrity, professionalism and in good faith, but unfortunately that wasn’t enough.

We do not believe the outcome ultimately reflected a level playing field, and it is difficult to reconcile the strength of our bid and preparedness to close with the final decision. While we respect competitive outcomes, we also believe that processes of this significance should be conducted with transparency, consistency, integrity and in good faith. While this outcome is both surprising and disappointing, we view this experience as part of a broader journey. We remain proud of the partners with whom we work, the speed at which we are able to execute, and the shared vision that unites us. Our belief in the global growth of sport remains as strong as ever. We look forward to channeling that energy into future opportunities where we can deploy our capital, expertise, and long-term commitment. We wish the Rajasthan Royals success going forward and thank all those who were a key part of the journey alongside of us” the statement read.

The IPL franchise, along with its teams in South Africa (Paarl Royals) and the Caribbean (Barbados Royals men’s and women’s teams), is valued at ₹15,660 crore ($1.65 billion).

Somani’s group had earlier threatened legal action against the new Rajasthan Royals owners over the deal, but now it looks like they are not going ahead with it.