WHEN THE Indian Premier League (IPL) launched in 2008, the owners of the new cricket tournament’s city-based franchises were chiefly India’s glitterati(名流，上层人士). Bollywood stars and tycoons spent fortunes on these trophy assets(象征地位的资产). The involvement of such celebrities helped make the league a smashing success(巨大的成功). Estimating viewership(收视率，观众人数) is tricky, but anywhere from 400m to 900m people regularly watch the matches.
2008年印度板球超级联赛（IPL）启动时，这项新赛事城市球队的所有者主要是印度的名流。宝莱坞明星和商业大亨在这些象征地位的资产上挥金如土。这些名人的参与帮助联赛取得了巨大成功。估算收视率并不容易，但经常观看比赛的人数在4亿到9亿之间。
Increasingly, however, Indian A-listers(一线明星) are vying with(与……竞争) institutional capital from abroad. In March a consortium(财团，联合体) including Blackstone, an American private-equity (PE) giant, and Bolt Ventures, an investment vehicle(投资工具) run by David Blitzer, who owns stakes in various sports teams in America and elsewhere, acquired the Royal Challengers Bengaluru for $1.8bn. Now Temasek, a Singaporean sovereign wealth fund(主权财富基金), is on the hunt for(在寻找，物色) a team, according to Reuters. KKR, another American PE titan (not to be confused with the Kolkata Knight Riders), is also eager. In 2021 CVC, a European PE firm, bankrolled(资助，提供资金) the launch of the Gujarat Titans. Last year it sold a two-thirds stake in the team to an Indian conglomerate for a hefty profit(以可观的利润).
然而，印度一线明星正越来越多地与来自国外的机构资本竞争。今年3月，一个包括美国私募巨头黑石集团和由大卫·布利策（David Blitzer）运营的投资工具Bolt Ventures在内的财团，以18亿美元收购了皇家挑战者班加罗尔队。布利策在美国及其他地区拥有多支体育球队的股份。据路透社报道，新加坡主权财富基金淡马锡正在物色一支球队。另一家美国私募巨头KKR（不要与加尔各答骑士队混淆）也跃跃欲试。2021年，欧洲私募公司CVC为古吉拉特泰坦队的成立提供了资金。去年，它以可观的利润将球队三分之二的股份出售给了一家印度企业集团。
Foreign interest in the IPL is understandable. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which runs the league, made just $724m from the original auction(初始拍卖). Houlihan Lokey, an investment bank, estimates(估计) that the IPL is now worth more than $20bn, reflecting(反映，体现) the rapid rise of the Indian consumer.
外国对IPL的兴趣是可以理解的。负责运营联赛的印度板球管理委员会（BCCI）最初拍卖仅获得7.24亿美元。投资银行Houlihan Lokey估计，IPL现在价值超过200亿美元，反映了印度消费者的迅速崛起。