Anand Mahindra Backs a ₹30 Cr Bet to Give Indian Esports Its Own Franchise League

Indian esports has no shortage of tournaments. Let’s Game Now is betting the bigger opportunity is turning those disconnected competitions into something closer to a permanent sports property — with franchises, seasons, city qualifiers and recurring audiences.

The gaming and esports company has raised ₹30 crore in a funding round backed by industrialist Anand Mahindra, Bestvantage Investments and a UAE-based family office. The capital will be used to accelerate development of the Indian Super Gaming League (ISGL), its franchise-based esports competition. The company has not disclosed its valuation, stake sold or detailed allocation of the round.

ISGL was announced in March 2026 with eight franchises linked to existing Indian sports teams, including Mumbai City FC, FC Goa, Chennaiyin FC, Kerala Blasters FC, Inter Kashi and Puneri Paltan. Its format combines permanent franchise ownership with city qualifiers and a national competition structure. Titles announced include EA Sports FC 26, Call of Duty: Mobile, Cricket 26 and chess.

That structure explains the comparison with leagues such as the IPL. The ambition is not simply to run another gaming event, but to create team identities and repeatable seasons that sponsors, broadcasters and fans can follow over time. Mahindra also brings experience from professional sport through his involvement in the creation of the Pro Kabaddi League.

Founded in 2018 by Santanu Basu, Let’s Game Now operates online tournaments, offline events and live broadcasts. The company reports a community of more than 1.4 million members, over 2,000 events across 18 countries and a grassroots network spanning more than 400 colleges in 80 cities. These figures are company-reported.

The harder part begins after launch. Franchise esports needs repeat viewership, sponsor demand and economics strong enough to sustain teams and production costs over multiple seasons. The ₹30 crore gives ISGL room to build that infrastructure; whether Indian gaming audiences begin supporting esports franchises with the loyalty seen in traditional sport will determine how far the model can go.