Oval Invincibles is MI London as RIL concludes Surrey deal

Reliance Industries has completed the purchase of a 49% stake in Surrey County Cricket Club's Oval Invincibles franchise in The Hundred, closing the deal at £60.27 million (₹725 crore). The transaction valued the team at £123 million.

Starting the 2026 season, both the men and women sides will be rebranded as MI London, with Reliance Strategic Business Ventures holding 49% and Surrey retaining 51%.

Nita Ambani, owner of Mumbai Indians (MI) cricket team, said London holds a special place in cricket. "Together with Surrey, we look forward to nurturing young talent, engaging diverse communities and uniting fans through their shared love of the game," she said.


Akash Ambani, owner of MI and a director of Reliance Industries, said MI London marks a new chapter in expanding the MI ecosystem. "Building on our shared passion for cricket, we look forward to collaborating with our partners at Surrey CCC and building on the legacy of The Hundred's most successful team," he said.

RIL's growing global cricket footprint includes teams in the WPL, MLC (MI New York), ILT20 (MI Emirates) and SA20 (MI Cape Town).

A US tech consortium, which includes Times Internet chairman Satyan Gajwani, Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, picked up 49% in London Spirit for £145 million, valuing the side at £295 million.

Other deals include Knighthead Capital at Birmingham Phoenix, RPSG at Manchester Originals, Sun TV at Northern Superchargers (now Sunrisers Leeds) GMR at Southern Brave and Washington Freedom at Welsh Fire.

Sun TV also completed a full takeover of Sunrisers Leeds for £100.5 million. RPSG acquired 70% of Manchester Originals for £75 million, valuing it at £107 million, while GMR paid £48 million for 49% of Southern Brave at £98 million valuation.

The Hundred is a 100-ball-per-innings franchise cricket league run by the ECB featuring eight city-based teams. The franchise partnerships have collectively attained a valuation of £975 million since ECB began selling stakes in the franchises.