Maiden win helps RCB dethrone CSK as the most valuable IPL franchise: Report
Mumbai, Jul 08 (PTI): End of a 17-year drought has helped Royal Challengers Bengaluru propel the franchise’s valuation to USD 269 million, and helped it dethrone Chennai Super Kings from the top spot, a report said on Tuesday.
The standalone valuation of the Board of Cricket Control India-promoted Indian Premier League (IPL) has jumped 13.8 per cent to USD 3.9 billion, the report by Houlihan Lokey, an investment bank, said.
Value of the IPL as a business has risen to USD 18.5 billion, up 12.9 per cent, the report said.
The Ambani family-run Mumbai Indians’ valuation has surged to USD 242 million, which has helped the franchise become the second most valuable one.
A “disappointing” season made the India Cements’ N Srinivasan-owned CSK slip to number 3 in 2025, from top spot in the year-ago period, with the brand valued at USD 235 million, it said.
Shah Rukh Khan’s Kolkata Knight Riders secured the fourth place in brand value with USD 227 million, while Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) stood fifth with a valuation of USD 154 million.
Punjab Kings (PBKS) achieved the highest growth of 39.6 per cent in 2025, reaching USD 141.0 million and ranking ninth, largely due to their strong performance as runners-up under new captain Shreyas Iyer.
PBKS Chief Executive Satish Menon said the franchise saw IPL as a scalable business model with high visibility, secure revenue streams, and strong brand-building potential.
“We now operate with the mindset of a media-sport brand with multiple revenue verticals, not just a cricket team — and that’s where real profitability lies,” he said, adding that they have now built the franchise into a sustainable sports business.
The investment bank’s director for financial and valuation advisory, Harsh Talikoti, said franchise valuations have soared, media rights deals have reached record highs, and brand partnerships have diversified across sectors.
The report said the Tata Group extended its title-sponsorship commitment through 2028 in a lucrative five-year deal worth USD 300 million, while there was a 25 per cent jump at Rs 1,485 crore in the sale of four associate sponsorship slots given to My11Circle, Angel One, RuPay, and CEAT.
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Egg-donation racket targeting poor women busted in Maharashtra's Thane; 3 held
Thane (PTI): Police have unearthed an egg-donation racket, suspected to be involving crores of rupees, that repeatedly exploited vulnerable women in Maharashtra's Thane district, officials said.
The victims were offered Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 per cycle and repeatedly used as egg donors, resulting in physical exploitation. They were taken to IVF centres where the eggs were surgically extracted and sold for lakhs, they said, adding that so far, 20 women are believed to have fallen prey to the racket.
Three women have been arrested in connection with the illegal trade operating out of a residential apartment and a sonography centre at Joveli in Badlapur East, the police officials said on Saturday.
Egg donation is a fertility procedure where a woman provides eggs for another person to conceive, usually via IVF (in vitro fertilisation). The donor undergoes screening and hormone treatment, eggs are retrieved, fertilised, and transferred to the recipient.
The arrested persons have been identified as Sulakshana Gadekar (44), Ashwini Chabukswar (29), and Manjusha Wankhede (46).
Following a tip-off from a victim to Thane Sub-District Hospital's Chief Medical Officer Dr Jyotsna Sawant, a raid was recently conducted at Gadekar’s residence in Nano City building, the police said.
“We recovered photos of injections used in connection with pregnancy, sonography reports, affidavits with false names, fake documents, and evidence of financial transactions on the mobile phones of the accused,” a police official said.
The accused targeted needy women, paying them Rs 25,000 to 30,000 per cycle. The victims were allegedly administered hormonal injections to increase egg production and were repeatedly used as donors, leading to physical exploitation, the official said.
“The process involved injecting the women to stimulate egg production and taking them for sonography. Once the eggs were ready, the victims were sent to IVF centres where the eggs were surgically extracted and sold for lakhs of rupees,” the official added.
Ulhasnagar Deputy Commissioner of Police Sachin Gore said that more than 20 women might have fallen victim to this racket so far.
“The racket was previously operating in Vangani before shifting to Badlapur recently. We are investigating the involvement of IVF centres, doctors, and hospitals. High-profile names are likely to surface as the turnover of this illegal trade is estimated to be in crores,” Gore said.
A case has been registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, the police added.
