'RCB Cares': IPL 2025 winner announces ₹25 lakh for families of Bengaluru stampede victims
RCB announced ₹25 lakh for the families of the victims of the stampede not just “as financial aid, but as a promise of compassion, unity, and ongoing care.”
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) announced compensation of ₹25 lakh for the families of 11 people who died on June 4 in a stampede during during celebrations of the team’s big win in this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL).
“Our hearts broke on June 4, 2025,” the team wrote in a fresh statement issued on Saturday morning.
“We lost eleven members of the RCB family. They were part of us. Part of what makes our city, our community & our team unique. Their absence will echo in the memories of each one of us,” the statement further read.
The team announced that it has extended ₹25 lakh to the families of the victims of the tragic incident not just “as financial aid, but as a promise of compassion, unity, and ongoing care.”
“No amount of support can ever fill the space they’ve left behind. But as a first step, and with the deepest respect, RCB has extended ₹25 lakh each to their families,” the team said in the statement.
The team also announced the beginning of ‘RCB Cares’, which it described as a “long-term commitment for meaningful action that begins by honouring their memory. Every step forward will reflect what the fans feel, expect, and deserve.”
The Bengaluru stampede snowballed into a political slugfest, with the Bharatiya Janata Party, which is in opposition in Karnataka, blaming the ruling Congress for the tragedy. BJP questioned the state's deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar's presence at the Chinnaswamy Stadium when the stampede happened. DK Shivakumar clarified last week that he went to the stadium at the request of the city’s Police Commissioner who sought his help in winding up the programme swiftly.
‘June 4th changed everything’
The fresh aid comes almost three months after the stampede happened and the team announced financial support of ₹10 lakh to families of each of the eleven families on June 5, a day after the stampede. The team had also announced about the creation of ‘RCB Cares’ on June 5, which it said would be a fund to “support fans injured in this tragic incident.”
Two days back, on August 28, the team posted for the first time in almost three months and said, “The Silence wasn’t Absence. It was Grief.”
“This space was once filled with energy, memories and moments that you enjoyed the most.. But June 4th changed everything. That day broke our hearts, and the silence since then has been our way of holding space,” the statement read.
“In that silence, we’ve been grieving. Listening. Learning. And slowly, we’ve begun to build something more than just a response. Something we truly believe in."
The team added that ‘RCB Cares’ “grew out of a need to honour, to heal, and to stand beside our fans.”
