Abhishek Bachchan reveals why he invested in sports: “I never looked upon it as a business”
In a candid conversation with PwC India Chairperson Sanjeev Krishan on the podcast Future Unplugged, Abhishek Bachchan opened up about the quieter, lesser-known side of his journey, the one that has little to do with the silver screen and everything to do with long-term institution building in sports.
While most people still primarily know him as an actor born into one of Indian cinema’s most powerful legacies, Bachchan has spent the last decade deliberately creating a second, independent identity as a sports entrepreneur. “You already have one huge legacy,” Krishan observed during the conversation. “And you’re creating another one at the same time.”
Bachchan traced his love for sports back to his father, Amitabh Bachchan. “My love for sport was inculcated in me by my father, who’s a huge sports fan,” he said. He recalled childhood memories of his father teaching him kabaddi in their garden and introducing him to global sporting icons like Muhammad Ali, Pelé, Zico and Sócrates. That early exposure, he said, never left him.
His entry into professional sports ownership began almost by chance with the Jaipur Pink Panthers in the Pro Kabaddi League. What started as a passion project quickly became a hands-on commitment. Bachchan moved to Jaipur weeks before the first season, trained with the players, monitored their diet, and even helped with the smallest operational details. “I never looked upon it as a business. I still don’t,” he admitted, adding with a smile that his accountant is not particularly happy about that attitude.
The same philosophy guided his investment in Chennaiyin FC in the Indian Super League. Both teams, he noted, operate in sports that are not India’s dominant passion, which made the journey more challenging and more meaningful. “Everything gets compared to cricket,” he said. “We have a long way to go, but I firmly believe it will pay off in time.”
That belief has now taken him to Europe. As co-founder of the European T20 Premier League (ETPL), Bachchan is part of a group of Indian partners attempting to build a professional T20 club competition across Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands, the last major cricket market without one. “It’s the last frontier,” he explained. “Australia, Africa, Asia, North America… they all have competitive T20 leagues. Europe didn’t.”
For Bachchan, the difference between simply owning a team and building a league is significant. “I like building something,” he said. “Not just being in charge of a well-oiled machinery that is already created for me.” He emphasised the importance of putting his own capital in first and attracting owners who share a long-term vision — names like Steve Waugh, Faf du Plessis and Rahul Dravid among them.
Reflecting on the difference between entertainment and sports audiences, Bachchan observed that sports fans are “relentless” and “tribal.” Unlike film audiences, who need to be constantly impressed, sports supporters bring a deeper, more enduring loyalty – provided the product is authentic and the intent is clear.
Throughout the conversation, one theme remained consistent: the desire to create lasting impact rather than short-term returns. “For me in sports, it’s about what can I do that makes a difference,” Bachchan said. “Because then I have something to do. It’s not just signing a cheque.”
What emerges from the conversation is not just another celebrity investor story, but the portrait of a man steadily building a parallel legacy – one rooted in patience, personal capital, and long-term belief. In doing so, Abhishek Bachchan is proving that the most powerful second acts are often the ones built quietly, with conviction, and with the intent to last.
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