The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Wednesday announced the schedule for the IPL 2026 playoffs. While Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium was initially expected to host the final, the venue has now been shifted to the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, which is set to stage the IPL final for the fourth time.
After the end of the arduous yet riveting league stage over the next three weeks, the action will shift north for the playoffs. The HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala will host Qualifier 1 on May 26, while the New International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh will host the Eliminator on May 27 between the third- and fourth-placed teams. The same venue will also stage Qualifier 2 on May 29, where the loser of Qualifier 1 will face the winner of the Eliminator to decide the second finalist.
The caravan will then move west for the season-ending finale on May 31 in Ahmedabad.
Why was the IPL 2026 final moved out of Bengaluru?
According to an ANI report on May 5, the IPL 2026 playoff matches were initially expected to be split between Punjab and Karnataka, whose representative teams had reached the final last season. However, “owing to certain operational and logistical considerations,” as stated in the IPL media release on Wednesday, the playoffs were eventually spread across three cities. While Punjab retained hosting rights for some matches, Bengaluru missed out.
An IPL statement from BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia revealed the primary reason behind the shift.
“Bengaluru was originally designated to host the Final. However, owing to certain requirements from the local association and authorities that were beyond the scope of BCCI’s established guidelines and protocols, the venue has been shifted and reassigned,” the release said.
Earlier, an ANI report had suggested that the convention of allowing defending champions to host the final faced hurdles due to local issues in Bengaluru, including political factors, which may have influenced the decision to move the game.
“IPL 2026 playoffs and final venue will be announced soon. Matches likely to be divided into Punjab and Karnataka, the last time winner should host the final, but MLA ticket issue is creating problems in Bengaluru, and if there is no solution, then bcci will move the final to another city,” the source told the news agency.
