Virat Kohli, The Businessman
We talked about Rafael Nadal in the last article of this series. You can read that here. Let’s shift to a different sport, more specifically, the “king” of that sport.
Virat Kohli is a household name in India, due to his prowess in the sport of cricket. He is one of the most recognizable people in India, where cricket is arguably the most loved sport. He has been nicknamed “King Kohli” lovingly by the cricket fraternity because of the legendary status he has achieved through his play, and let’s face it, that term lands very well on the ears. Here’s a glimpse.
While we can talk (or debate) about his GOAT status some other time, let’s come to the topic we’re interested in, the finances.
Virat is listed in the 'A+' category by the Indian cricket board, which means that he has an annual contract worth Rs 7 Cr. His matchday fees are Rs 15 L for each test, Rs 6 L for each ODI, and Rs 3 L for each T20. He also earns another Rs 15 crore annually for being a part of the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
He has been a major proponent in bringing high fitness levels to the Indian cricket team, and has put his money where his mouth is. He stopped advertising for brands he didn’t feel were right for that vision and also launched a chain of gyms and fitness centres called Chisel Fitness, reportedly investing Rs 90 Cr in the brand.
He also owns a stake in the clothing brand Wrogn, which he himself advertises and which recently became a sponsor for RCB. Apart from this, he has also invested in multiple food-based businesses or startups, some of them being Rage Coffee, Blue Tribe and Nueva. He’s ventured into the finance/fintech companies too, some of those being MPL and Digit.
It is also reported that he charges more than Rs 7.5 Cr per advertisement and is associated with a number of brands. According to estimates, the total earnings from ads would amount to more than Rs 150 Cr annually which includes brands like MRF, Tissot, Cinthol, Star Sports, American Tourister and many more. He has also invested in different sports leagues around football, tennis and kabaddi.
He has some luxury homes in major cities in India like Mumbai and Gurgaon and until recently, had an enviable collection of luxury cars. He also has a watch collection worth well into crores of rupees. He has been seen wearing the “Rainbow Daytona”, which is sold for more than $500K on the second-hand market (which is more than 5 times its retail price). If you’re wondering why watches would cost that much, you can read this article here.
Kohli has been smart with his investments for a long time and that is now showing. His net worth stands at more than Rs 1000 Cr (~ $121 million). He has maintained his brand value, apart from performing at the top level, for more than a decade and is now bearing the fruit of all that labour. If you’ve followed his career at all, you know how much criticism and failures he has fought through. We wouldn’t know much about him, and he wouldn’t have been so rich, had he succumbed to the pressure. If there’s one thing we can take out of seeing him at the level he is now, it’s that if you never give up, you just might stand a chance. But if you do give up, you definitely lose.
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