Rajasthan Royals attract Rs 235 crore investment from British investors ahead of their IPL 2020 opener

Bengaluru, September 21: Since its inception in 2008, the Indian Premier League has attracted several millions of investments from major business houses. Now, Rajasthan Royals have added the latest page attracting funds from some prominent British investors and executives.

As per a report in the Sky News, Philip Jansen, the BT (British Telecom) Group chief executive, Ron Kalifa, the former Worldpay vice chairman, and Ed Wray, one of the founders of Betfair, have agreed to become shareholders in Rajasthan Royals. There are new 10 investors in total that include persons from media, sports and technology industry.

Rajasthan Royals are set to open their IPL 2020 campaign against Chennai Super Kings on Tuesday (September 22). The British investors are acquiring shares through Emerging Media, which is run by Royals co-founder Manoj Badale and the entity owns 51% of the Royals.

The Sky reported that new investment in the Royals is in tune to the GBP 25 million - approximately Rs 235 crore. If everything goes well, the report said, former England captain Andrew Strauss could join Rajasthan Royals Board of Directors from next year.

Rajasthan Royals had won the inaugural edition of the IPL in 2008 under former Australian spinner Shane Warne but since then their glory moments were largely restricted to occasional appearances in the play-offs. This year former Australian captain Steve Smith is leading in IPL 2020.