Abhishek Bachchan love for sports is well known. Such is his passion and dedication for sports that he has invested money in sports teams Jaipur Pink Panthers and Chennaiyin FC.
Now the Bollywood actor is expanding his portfolio as he has become the co-owner of the European T20 Premier League. The ETPL is a privately-owned franchise tournament in partnership with three member cricket nations Ireland, Scotland and the Netherland.
“it (investing in sports teams) is becoming a bit of an expensive hobby ” Bachchan said in an exclusive interview to CNBC-TV18.
The ETPL, which has been sanctioned by the International Cricket Council (ICC), is set to get underway from July 15 this year and will run till August 3. The tournament will feature the best of talent from the three nations rubbing shoulders with world-class players from across the world and is set to take the standard of cricket in these three countries several notches up.
Bachchan believes that his investment makes a significant impact.
“Maybe the next time we sit down, we can talk about the legacy that ETPL has left behind. I want that to be part of my story, that you made a difference” Bachchan added.
While investing in cricket remains the benchmark in sports entrepreneurship in Indian context, Bachchan was cautious in the early days of his sports entrepreneurship journey.
While the likes of Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta and Juhi Chawla, Bachchan’s colleagues from the cinema world, bought teams in the lucrative Indian Premier League in 2007, Bachchan started late and took a different route. He instead invested his money in kabaddi and football. It was only in 2014 that his two big investments came. He became the owner of Jaipur Pink Panthers, one of the teams in the Pro Kabaddi League and Chennaiyin Football Club, a team that competes in the Indian Super League, India’s top-tire football league.
“I had certain criteria when I first started working in sports. Those criteria, some of them, have been achieved, and now I felt that I was ready for the next big leap, which is cricket. I wasn’t sure when I started with kabaddi in the Pro Kabaddi League and ISL with Chennaiyin FC, whether I could contribute anything to cricket” Bachchan explained.
A hardcore Chelsea fan, Bachchan believes that he wasn’t sure about his knowledge in cricket. He wasn’t sure the value he could bring to cricket simply by pumping in his money in the sport. So Bachchan started small before going big.
“my cricketing knowledge may not be as good as some of the pundits, I didn’t know what I could bring to the table. Last year, my father and I invested in the ISPL, and took the Mumbai franchise, which is the Indian Street Premier League. That was my litmus test, testing the waters of cricket. And after that experience, I feel okay now I was ready to take the next big leap” Bachchan said.
Abhishek along with his father Amitabh Bachchan bought the Majhi Mumbai team of the Indian Street Premier League, a T10 tennis ball cricket league held in India.
The junior Bachchan loved the experience of ISPL as he found it be “very playful” and “immensely competitive.” He loved the experience of running the Mumbai team in ISPL and it was only after that he felt geared up to take the next step.
“I am dedicated to working with all stakeholders to ensure that the ETPL becomes a resounding success, bringing cricket closer to millions across Europe.” Bachchan had said when he was unveiled as the co-owner of the league.
So is Bachchan aiming to put his money in having a team in the IPL anytime soon?
“I think the IPL has set the standard for how teams should be run, and I think they do a great job. Yeah, I’m not sure whether I wanted to get into that equation. I want some more time before I can do that” Bachchan added.
Despite being cautious about investing in the IPL, Bachchan is confident that his other sports investments have been fairly rewarding thus far.
“I’m good at running a team. I’m thankfully, by the grace of God, I’m good at not losing money with my teams” Bachchan said.
For him becoming the co-owner of a league is a far exciting prospect rather than owning or co-owing a team in the IPL. With ETPL, Bachchan is also taking cricket and entertainment to a market that has remained untapped.
“The opportunity presented itself to become part of the ownership group of the league…that’s where the excitement came into me, because it was not going to be in India. We’re doing it in Europe. Here was an opportunity to bring T20 entertainment, to Europe, to a market which doesn’t have that already” Bachchan said.
The first season of ETPL will have six teams from Dublin, Belfast, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Edinburgh, and Glasgow and will have extensive coverage, in India, Australia, England, cricket’s primary markets. It will ensure a cricket revolution in Europe and help nurture new talent. And that is exactly what Bachchan wishes to achieve.
“Can I make a difference? And I feel these are markets where I can make a difference, and if I can make a difference with the ownership of the league, then I felt that was the one big leap that I needed to take, as opposed to just being a team owner” Bachchan said before signing off.