No April Fool's joke! Vijay Mallya bought Barbados Tridents for just Rs 7000

New Delhi: Troubled tycoon Vijay Mallya on Monday revealed that he acquired his second T20 franchise, Barbados Tridents, for only USD 100.

With him unable to pay salaries to the now defunct Kingfisher airlines, there was a huge furore when news of Mallya buying the Caribbean Premier League franchise first emerged.

Mallya, who owns creditors an amount of INR 9000 crore, left for London last month. Interestingly, the 60-year-old has lost control over Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) franchise as well.

"Everyone made a big drama about me acquiring the CPL team Barbados Tridents. It was an acquisition that was not made for any cash. The acquisition was made for just USD 100," he told PTI.

"By buying the team, me and the other shareholders assumed the obligation to participate in the tournament. Now participation in CPL costs money. So I went to the Barbados government saying I need your support. I met the Prime Minister and the government agreed to support but I paid USD 100 only to buy the team.

"Running the team will cost about USD 2 million but the Barbados government is granting subsidies to the franchise. People don't get it and jump to conclusions without knowing the facts. There is a cost of participation such as players salaries and franchise fee. So I worked out all the numbers, studied the model and went to government asking for help. They were keen to help me," Mallya further added.

With no central revenue pool like IPL, CPL teams depend on sponsors and ticket collections to generate profits.