The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved Poonawalla Sports and Fitness Pvt Ltd’s acquisition of three professional cricket franchises.
The franchises are Rajasthan Royals in the IPL, Paarl Royals in South Africa and Barbados Royals in the Caribbean. The three teams are part of the same “Royals” franchise network.
Westview Cricket is the investment entity of the Lakshmi Mittal family, while Poonawalla Sports and Fitness is wholly owned by Serum Institute of India CEO Adar Poonawalla.
Under the proposed ownership structure, Westview Cricket will acquire a 75% stake in the cricket franchise group, while Poonawalla Sports will hold an 18% stake. Existing shareholder Manoj Badale will retain the remaining 7%.
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What does the CCI approval mean?
The CCI approval clears a key regulatory hurdle for the ownership change. The competition regulator identified the transaction as C-2026/07/1444 and said it had approved the acquisition of the three franchises by Westview Cricket and Poonawalla Sports.
The deal involves Mauritius-based EM Sporting Holdings Ltd, which is the holding company for Royal Multisport Pvt Ltd, Paarl Royals Ltd and Barbados Royals Ltd. Royal Multisport owns and operates the Rajasthan Royals franchise.
The proposed transaction follows an earlier attempt to sell the Rajasthan Royals to a US-based consortium, which did not go through.
With the CCI’s approval now in place, the proposed transfer of control can move ahead, subject to other applicable approvals and closing conditions.
The transaction represents a major ownership change for one of the IPL’s original franchises. Rajasthan Royals won the inaugural IPL season in 2008 and has since expanded its ‘Royals’ brand into overseas T20 leagues.
The CCI approval therefore comes as a significant development in bringing the Mittal family and Poonawalla into the ownership of the Rajasthan Royals group.