IPL 2025 Winner: Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB)

After 18 long seasons, three close chances in a final game, and intense support from millions of local and international fans, Royal Challengers Bangalore are the IPL 2025 winner, earning their very first trophy. Throughout the season, there was plenty of drama, as we saw in our detailed Indian Premier League match predictions; but nothing topped the final.

RCB defeated the Punjab Kings by 6 runs in a very close-fought match that took place in Ahmedabad on June 3rd. There were, of course, many great matches and memorable moments throughout this 2025 campaign, but everyone is going to acknowledge RCB for pulling off this epic championship.

The Road to IPL 2025 Final: Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Punjab Kings

It was no real surprise that the Royal Challengers and Kings were in the last IPL match, as both teams were the best in the league during the regular season. Both squads finished with 19 points and a 9-4 record, although the Kings claimed the number one spot due to a slightly better Net Run Rate.

Star batter and all-around Indian legend, Virat Kohli, was superb for RCB this season, as he led the team with the bat after scoring 657 runs in 15 innings. This meant that Kohli was the third-highest run-scorer in the entire 2025 IPL season.

Bowler Josh Hazlewood from Australia was also a major factor for the Royal Challengers’ great season, after he secured 22 wickets for 386 runs in the season and was also third best in the league.

Oddly enough, RCB defeated the Kings in the Qualifier match, winning by 8 wickets, which gave them a direct route to the Final to become the eventual IPL 2025 winners.

The Kings were given an extra chance as they finished on top of the table, and after beating the Mumbai Indians by 5 wickets in the second Qualifier, the stage was set for a second showdown between the Kings and Royal Challengers in the Championship match.

The Final Showdown: Key Moments and Turning Points

On a pitch that benefitted bowlers, it was no revelation that the Kings chose to field first after winning the toss.

For the most part, the Kings’ bowlers managed to keep the RCB batters to low scores and a complete total of 9/190. However, the star of the night with the bat was undoubtedly Jitesh Sharma, whose aggressive cameo at the end allowed RCB to post a competitive total. Kohli played his part with 43 off 35 deliveries as well.

While this wasn’t a massive score from Kohli by any means, it was still enough on a tough batting pitch, considering no other player managed above 26 runs and opening batter, Phil Salt, was dismissed for 16 runs.

A target of 191 didn’t seem too difficult for the Kings to reach in the second innings, but true to the Ahmedabad pitch helping out bowlers, it was RCB controlling the match with the ball.

Despite Hazlewood not being his usual excellent self, as he was knocked around the ground for 54 runs and only one wicket (13.50 ER), there was decent help from Kumar (2/38) and Pandya (2/17) to ensure that the Kings only reached a score of 7/184.

Pandya became the first player to get the Player of the Match award on two separate occasions in IPL Finals. His spell of bowling was perhaps the greatest single factor in RCB winning the IPL Final.

The Kings were incredibly close this time, especially after hitting 14 sixes and 8 fours, but it just wasn’t enough and their elusive first championship will have to wait until another time.

Heroes of the Night: Players Who Defined the Final

While this 2025 IPL Final might not be remembered as one of the best of all time, it still had epic moments for star players. After all, being the IPL 2025 winner doesn’t come easy.

Virat Kohli

Most of the credit for the RCB championship has to go to Kohli. The Final wasn’t his highest scoring match, but he was fantastic during the regular season and provided steady and experienced batting throughout the matches. His 43 runs in the Final was the team’s highest and ensured there was a decent total score of 190. Hopefully Kohli was in your fantasy lineup with the help of our tips for Dream11.

Jitesh Sharma

While Sharma wasn’t known for explosive batting throughout the season, he certainly had his moments and managed a high score of 85* for a total of 261 runs. His batting prowess was essential in the IPL Final, as a fairly iffy middle order meant that the runs needed to flow, but thankfully Sharma managed to hit a big 24 runs from just 10 balls.

Krunal Pandya

Left-arm bowler Pandya was solid for RCB during the regular season and managed 17 wickets for 379 runs. Although those figures aren’t groundbreaking, his bowling was badly needed in the final match when Hazlewood wasn’t helping as much as predicted. Pandya finished with 2/17 (4.25 ER) in the Championship game and helped make it difficult for the Kings’ batters.

Shashank Singh

The Kings won’t look back fondly at this match, but they had a glimmer of hope with Singh at the batting crease. He was the one reason that the Kings even had a chance, as he scored a massive 61* runs from 30 deliveries. With six sixes and three fours, Singh may have single-handily helped the Kings win the match, but he just didn’t get enough support from his teammates.

What YOU Thought: Here are the Poll Results

Our tipster sided with PBKS to win (and with just 6 runs in it, what a close call!) but who did YOU predict?

Throughout the playoffs, we ran several polls on our OCB’s socials, and your cricketing instincts were bang on. Here’s the results:

OCB Social Polls	Fan Prediction Result
WhatsApp: Qualifier 2	🟩 73% picked RCB to win – Spot on
Telegram: Qualifier 2	🟩 68% backed RCB – Right again
WhatsApp: Final Winner	🟩 52% chose RCB over PBKS – You kept the faith
Facebook: Final Winner	🟩 60% voted RCB to lift the cup. Legends
Telegram: Final Winner	🟩 69% got it right – RCB for the win

Cricket, as in life, has unexpected ways to surprise us all. That’s what makes the IPL so thrilling. A few overs, one over even, can change everything. And that’s exactly what RCB did. They flipped the script, turned up the heat, and made history. Congratulations to Virat Kohil and the team for securing victory after a very well-played season! 

IPL Winners by Year

So, we know who won 2025 IPL, but what about previous seasons? Well, it's been a decade of dominance, comebacks, and underdog stories. From the consistent powerhouses to surprise champions, here’s a quick look at who lifted the trophy each year:

Year	Winner
2025	Royal Challengers Bengaluru
2024	Kolkata Knight Riders
2023	Chennai Super Kings
2022	Gujarat Titans
2021	Chennai Super Kings
2020	Mumbai Indians
2019	Mumbai Indians
2018	Chennai Super Kings
2017	Mumbai Indians
2016	Sunrisers Hyderabad
2015	Mumbai Indians

What This Final Means for IPL and Indian Cricket

As you can see from the above table, the question of who won the IPL trophy 2025 is a big deal. RCB becoming champions is massive for Indian cricket after an almost two decade wait. Not only is it a milestone in Virat Kohli’s career to win his first IPL title, but also the first for RCB is a great step for equality within the league. It’s no fun to see one team dominating Indian Premier League cricket every year.

The IPL just keeps getting bigger and better, and the influx of brilliant international players alongside talented homegrown stars is great for the league’s development. We all want to be surprised and amazed when watching the IPL, so it’s great to see the Royal Challengers finally win an IPL title and prove everyone wrong. Cricket websites for betting likely offered generous odds on an RCB victory, making their win even sweeter.

We hopefully get to see other teams pick up their first championship in the coming years and have more local Indian players emerge to become stars. Keep checking our cricket blog, and sign up to the OCB newsletter for more insights.