Guwahati, 7 May 

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Devajit Saikia on Thursday said the decision to shift the Indian Premier League 2026 final from Bengaluru to Ahmedabad was taken after the Karnataka State Cricket Association allegedly sought complimentary tickets far beyond the permitted quota.

Saikia explained that, under IPL protocol, the defending champions are entitled to host the final and one playoff match at their home venue, which would have made Bengaluru the natural choice after Royal Challengers Bengaluru's title-winning campaign last season.

However, the BCCI decided to move the matches following what it described as excessive ticket demands from the state association. Saikia said that host associations are entitled to only 15 per cent of the stadium's seating capacity as complimentary tickets.

"Yesterday, the BCCI and the IPL announced the venues for the playoff matches. We have the Qualifiers and Playoffs, as well as the Final match. Therefore, we have selected three venues. One venue is Dharamshala; the first playoff match will take place there. Subsequently, there will be an Eliminator and another playoff match. Thus, the second and third matches will be held in New Chandigarh, while the Final is scheduled to take place on May 31st at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad," Saikia told the reporter.

"Initially, in accordance with standard protocol, the defending champions (or the champion franchise from the previous year) are entitled to host the Final, as well as one playoff match, at their home venue. RCB was the defending champion last year; therefore, this match should have ideally been held in Bangalore. However, due to certain circumstances arising from recent developments, the BCCI and the IPL were compelled to decide to shift the venue away from Bangalore, allocating one match to New Chandigarh and the other to the Narendra Modi Stadium, which is the designated venue for the Final in Ahmedabad," Saikia added.

"As per IPL protocol, we are required to provide only 15% of the total seating capacity as complimentary tickets to the host association. This constitutes the standard protocol; all host state associations receive a 15% allocation of their total capacity in the form of complimentary tickets. However, we received information from various sources indicating that during the hosting of IPL league matches, the Karnataka State Association was claiming a significantly higher number of complimentary tickets, far exceeding the stipulated 15%," Saikia further added.

The BCCI became concerned after receiving information that the Karnataka body had been seeking allocations well beyond that limit during IPL league matches. In response to a BCCI query, the association allegedly requested around 10,000 additional tickets for members, affiliated clubs, MLAs, MLCs and the Government of Karnataka, including 700 complimentary passes for the state government.

Calling the demands a violation of IPL regulations, Saikia said the BCCI had "no option" but to shift the playoff fixtures. As a result, Qualifier 1 will be played at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala on May 26, while the Eliminator and Qualifier 2 will be staged in Mullanpur on May 27 and 29, respectively, before the final in Ahmedabad on May 31.

"Consequently, we sent them an email requesting precise details regarding this matter. We were shocked when we received a response via email from the Karnataka State Cricket Association on May 2nd; in that email, they stated that over and above the 15% complimentary ticket quota, they would require an additional, substantial allocation of tickets for their members, affiliated clubs, and various others. Most surprisingly, they also requested tickets for their local Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) and Members of the Legislative Council," Saikia said.

"And also to the government of Karnataka, 700 complimentary tickets. Thus, over and above the 15% allocation, they were demanding approximately 10,000 additional tickets. And as you are all aware, the BCCI serves as the host body for the Playoff and Final matches. Therefore, we cannot violate our protocols by issuing tickets in excess of what is permitted under the IPL's rules and regulations, specifically, the 15% complimentary quota allocated to the host state. Consequently, we were compelled to make the difficult decision to relocate the matches from Karnataka," he concluded.