With the Indian Premier League emerging as one of the world's biggest sporting leagues and a major money-making avenue, Saudi Arabia has reportedly expressed interest in buying a multi-billion dollar stake in it. Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s advisers are said to have communicated with Indian government officials about moving the IPL into a holding company valued at almost $30 billion, a Bloomberg News report said. (Cricket News)
The report added that talks were held when the crown prince visited India in September, and that the kingdom proposed investing as much as $5 billion into the league and help lead an expansion into other countries.
The latest development comes a month after Saudi Arabia announced that it was considering setting up an office of its sovereign wealth fund in India to facilitate investments in the country. The country also stated its plans on investing in Indian start-ups through venture capital.
In recent times, Saudi Arabia has invested heavily in sports - football and golf in particular. The oil-rich nation will, in all likelihood, be hosting the 2034 FIFA World Cup. Meanwhile, football superstars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar and Karim Benzema have joined the Saudi Pro League over the last year.
At the same time, the IPL continues to grow rapidly in terms of financial viability. In June last year, the IPL media rights auction was held, wherein Viacom 18 bagged the digital rights for a whopping Rs 23,785 crore and Disney acquired the television broadcast rights for Rs 23,575 crore, for the next two years.
