By RCB has decided to replace the anglicized ‘Bangalore‘ in their team name with the city’s official name, Bengaluru. The change was unveiled during the franchise’s UNBOX event at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Tuesday (March 19). The team, known as Royal Challengers Bangalore since the IPL’s inception in 2008, will now be called Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
The franchise had hinted at a name change through promotional campaigns on social media leading up to the event. Local fans had long been calling for the incorporation of ‘Bengaluru’ after the capital city of Karnataka officially adopted the more vernacular name on November 1, 2014.
Bangalore to Bengaluru
RCB joins a list of IPL teams that have changed their names. Kings XI Punjab rebranded as Punjab Kings three years ago, and Delhi Daredevils became Delhi Capitals following investment from the JSW Group. Additionally, the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiant dropped an ‘s’ at the end of their name before their final season in the league.
During the ceremony, RCB honored their women’s team, the recently crowned WPL Champions, with a guard of honor by the men’s team. Winning captain Smriti Mandhana led her squad on a victory lap around the ground with the trophy, receiving enthusiastic cheers from a near-capacity crowd.
RCB also inducted Karnataka legend and former player Vinay Kumar into their hall of fame. Vinay played five seasons for RCB, with his standout season in 2013, where he claimed 23 wickets at an average of 21.43.
