IPL 2026: Playoffs venues revealed as Ahmedabad replaces Bengaluru to host final

In a major update of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, the playoff venues have reportedly been finalized ahead of the knockout stage. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) informed that they would soon announce the dates and venues of the playoffs in a few days, as the halfway mark of the competition has already been crossed.

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Currently, the Punjab Kings are at the top of the points table. The Shreyas Iyer-led side has won six victories and a no-result in nine clashes at a net run rate of +0.855. Meanwhile, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, who have grabbed the same number of wins at a better run rate of +1.420, are in second position in the points table. 

IPL 2026 final to be hosted at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad

As per the normal trend, generally, the defending champions get the chance to host the final of the edition at their home venue. In the same process, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, who won their maiden title of the league last year, under the leadership of Rajat Patidar, should have been allowed to host the final at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

But that doesn’t seem to be the case. The biggest surprise of the event is that the final could be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, which also hosted the final of last year, after Kolkata was stripped of hosting the game at the Eden Gardens due to the foul weather.

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As per the current reports, Bengaluru has been stripped of the race because of the ticket controversy. Meanwhile, the first qualifier clash will take place at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association in Dharamshala, while both the eliminator and the second qualifier are set to be played in Mullanpur, which is the home venue for PBKS, who ended as the runners-up in 2025. 

This will be the fourth final in Ahmedabad in the last five years, including the 2022 final when the Gujarat Titans won the title, followed by the Chennai Super Kings in 2023. The same happened even in 2025.

Qualifier 1: May 26 (Dharamshala)

Eliminator: May 27 (Mullanpur)

Qualifier 2: May 29 (Mullanpur)

Final: May 31 (Ahmedabad)

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Why M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru loses IPL 2026 final hosting?

Before the IPL 2026 opener between the RCB and the Sunrisers Hyderabad, the Congress MLA, Vijayanand Kashappanavar, stated that every MLA should get at least five tickets for the IPL, as he claimed that the representatives are VIPs, who should not stand in line. The Karnataka Deputy CM, DK Shivakumar, reckoned that three tickets for Bengaluru will be given to the MLAs and MPs.

He added that only the MLAs or their family can attend the IPL games, explaining that the tickets are marked as ‘non-transferable.’ The entire decision was regarding the MLA ticketing issue not being resolved, as per the reports. 

"Bengaluru was originally designated to host the Final. However, owing to certain requirements from the local association & authorities that were beyond the scope of BCCI's established guidelines and protocols, the venue has been shifted and reassigned." The statement of the Indian cricket board shed light.