The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has officially announced the schedule for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 playoffs, confirming that the final will be held on May 31 at the Narendra Modi Stadium, widely regarded as the largest cricket stadium in the world. The venue is set to host a high-stakes clash to crown the new champions.
Originally, Bengaluru was slated to host the final. However, due to certain requirements imposed by local authorities that did not align with BCCI protocols, the board decided to shift the summit clash to Ahmedabad. Interestingly, the 2025 final was also played at the same venue, making this the fourth time in the last five years that Ahmedabad will host the IPL final.
The defending champions, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), had ended their 18-year title drought by defeating Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the 2025 final. Following last year’s tragic incident during RCB’s victory celebrations, where several lives were lost, authorities had initially planned tighter governance measures at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, with the venue expected to host a Qualifier and the Final in 2026.
IPL playoffs schedule out, Ahmedabad to host final
However, the late change has sparked backlash among fans and experts, many of whom are frustrated with the repeated hosting of IPL finals in Ahmedabad. Critics argue that rotating venues more fairly would better reflect the league’s national appeal, while supporters of the move point to Ahmedabad’s capacity and experience in handling high-profile matches.
Here are some of the reactions on X after Bengaluru lost hosting rights for the IPL 2026 final:
Neither a single knockout game in Chinnaswamy nor the finals..
No relevancy for RCB & Chinnaswamy despite winning the trophy last year 😭🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣pic.twitter.com/bQagjY1DPY
— Navneet 🚩 (@MSDian067) May 6, 2026
They are scared of RCB fans celebration? 🥺
Playoffs Schedule:
Qualifier 1 – May 26 – HPCA Stadium, Dharamshala (PBKS Home ground )
Eliminator – May 27 –Mullanpur (PBKS home ground )
Qualifier 2 – May 29 –Mullanpur (PBKS home ground )
Final – May 31 – Narendra Modi Stadium,…
— Yuva (@Yuva_Sanchari) May 6, 2026
As a Benguluru resident & RCB fan, I feel like cheated. Every single time, Narendra Modi stadium for every big final feels absolutely biased from BCCI. It’s really unfair on other venues.
I’m actually feeling depressed that Chinnaswamy has missed out on hosting the final💔💔— Rohit Sutrave (@imsrohit18) May 6, 2026
So rcb gets no playoffs 🤡
— ಬಾಲ ನರೇಂದ್ರ (@wyte_johnny) May 6, 2026
BCCI really needs to stop treating Ahmedabad like the only stadium in India just because of revenue and political obsession. pic.twitter.com/eiDJFqfcMm
— AdityaVarma (@AdityaVarma45_) May 6, 2026
Why Ahmedabad again as it will favor home team Gujarat 🤷🏽♂️ if you wanna host all the matches in Ahmedabad because of capacity then make it as a neutral venue and give Gujarat a separate ground for home games why partiality 🤷🏽♂️ bad decisions from BCCI 😤
— Dr. Pradeep v s (@Pradeep551999) May 6, 2026
🙏🏼😭😭 pic.twitter.com/Nm99NtMW8c
— Tushar 🇩🇪 (@Oooshittttt) May 6, 2026
It’s really best for RCB. They know the conditions of it because of last year’s final. So again we are going to lift the trophy
— VK_coverdrive (@Unfiltered_c) May 6, 2026
