Reliance Industries grows cricket footprint with franchise in South Africa's new T20 League

Reliance Industries expanded its growing international footprint in cricket on Wednesday by acquiring a franchise in Cricket South Africa’s upcoming T20 league which is scheduled to start in January 2023.

The new franchise will be based in Cape Town and it follows the acquisition of the UAE-based International League T20 team by the Reliance industries as they take forward the legacy of the Mumbai Indians brand.

Over the years, Reliance Industries has played a crucial role in evolving the sports ecosystem through ownership of cricket franchises, football league in India, sports sponsorship, consultancy, and athlete talent management.

Further, Reliance Foundation Sports – the CSR wing of RIL has been leading India's Olympic Movement by providing opportunities to athletes across the country to become champions in multiple sports and also leading India's charge in hosting global sporting events.

Earlier this year, Mrs. Neeta Ambani, director of Reliance Industries, led a successful bid to host the prestigious International Olympic Committee Session in Mumbai in 2023 after a gap of 40 years.

Reacting to the latest news, Mrs. Ambani said: “I’m delighted to welcome our new T20 team to the Reliance family. We are excited to take the Mumbai Indians’ brand of fearless and entertaining cricket to South Africa, a nation that loves cricket as much as we do in India. South Africa has a strong sporting ecosystem, and we look forward to exploring the power and potential of this collaboration. As we grow MI's global cricketing footprint, we remain committed to spreading joy and cheer through sport.”

Mr. Akash Ambani, Chairman of Reliance Jio, said, “With our South African franchise, we now have three T20 teams across three countries. We look forward to leveraging our expertise and depth of knowledge in the cricket ecosystem & brand Mumbai Indians to help build the team and provide fans with some of the best cricketing experiences.”

The CSA's upcoming T20 league will feature six teams and comprise 33 matches. The teams will play each other twice in the round-robin format with the top three sides making it to the playoffs.

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