Investing in WPL team was always on top of our agenda: Prathamesh Mishra, RCB
In an exclusive interview with e4m, RCB chairman Mishra, who is currently the Chief Commercial Officer of Diageo India, shared his objectives behind buying the women's IPL team
“Breaking barriers, making history, and playing bold!” Prathamesh Mishra, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) chairman, posted on Twitter soon after winning the Women's Premier League Team in January this year.
After all, having two IPL teams in hand, both men and women, is no less feat although it came with huge investments of Rs 901 crore to be precise for the women's team.
Apart from the larger goal of empowering women, what was the goal behind buying a WPL team? Mishra says there's more to gender inclusivity than just the tag.
“Gender inclusivity is not just a statement, but there is a value attached to it. Inclusivity and diversity is at the core of Diageo India. Our workforce represents true society. For instance, in my sales team, women constitute 23 percent. Hence, when the WPL opportunity came, we decided to go for it. Not going after this opportunity (WPL) didn't make sense.”
"Diageo wants to be part of India’s growth story and seeks to inspire everyone so that all can come and play”, Mishra says, adding, “It is our responsibility to contribute to the nation's progress. Investing in the women’s team has always been on top of our agenda. We have invested Rs 901 Crores to get this team because this mission is really important for this country.”
We believe India will move if we convert sports & fitness from hobby to lifestyle and we are committed to this agenda, says Mishra who feels that nations can grow if there is gender parity.
What is RCB's larger game plan with the women's team now? Diageo India executive holds his cards close.
“We have just got the team, we are putting a plan in motion. Everything is moving so fast, the WPL has begun, soon after the men's IPL will start. We have the roadmap, we can drive a larger purpose. Give us some time,” Mishra says diplomatically.
We are going to make a new set of icons. Same properties, 12 in total, will be in place for women IPL.
The men’s IPL, glamorized by celebrity owners and top cricket players, has changed many aspects of the game’s concepts worldwide, making the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) the world’s richest cricket body.
Perhaps that's why the board earned nearly Rs 4,600 crore from the maiden auction of the WPL team despite economic constraints. Royal Challengers Bangalore made a successful bid of reportedly ₹901 crore, slightly lesser than Mumbai Indians' who got the women's team at the estimated cost of Rs 912 crore.
At such whopping costs, how many years would it take for the teams to get a return of investments? Mishra says that it's all about making a good start and making a place at the league's first.
“This league will be successful if everyone comes together. If the men's league took 10 years to reach this position, can the women’s counterpart reach there in five years? This is our strategy,” he remarks with a twinkle in his eye.
We are confident that the WPL will go a long way not just in boosting women's cricket in India but also mark a journey in equal participation of women in society at large,” Mishra says, though he refuses to share any numbers.
“We can’t talk about numbers as we are a listed company. Shareholders need to be told first about the WPL team and the numbers involved in it. Wait till March 31,” he says politely.
Global Lifestyle Brand
In terms of extended lifestyle proposition, RCB already owns a wide range of businesses like Bar & Cafe, Royal Challengers Sports Pvt Ltd (athleisure), fitness app Hustle that is a subscription-based live and on-demand fitness solution product, plant-based meat brand ‘RCB Uncut’, mocktail premixes ‘Dash of RCB’, Metaverse and NFT.
What is in the pipeline for this global lifestyle brand now? “Everything will be disclosed soon. Just wait,” Mishra laughs.
Social Media Engagement
At the core of RCB’s brand-building lies its enormous fan-following and social media engagement that can give other IPL teams a run for their money.
In 2022, the Bengaluru-based franchise was the only non-football team to feature in the global top 5 rankings of the highest social media engagement compiled by D&F, Mishra shares with pride.
While the list was topped by Real Madrid with 2.0 billion interactions, followed by FC Barcelona, Manchester United and Paris Saint Germain (PSG) with 1.7 billion, 1.4 billion, and 1.0 billion engagements on social media, respectively, RCB was 5th with 924 million interactions.
“It is set to grow further. We are creating a robust social media strategy for WPL as well,” says Mishra.
