Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Devajit Saikia, while clarifying the position on this controversy, said that Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) had demanded thousands of additional tickets, contrary to the prescribed rules.
Sports News: A big change has been seen regarding the final match of IPL 2026. The title match has been moved from the prestigious M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru and has now been shifted to Ahmedabad. This decision has shocked cricket fans, especially because this ground is considered the home ground of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). But the reason behind this change has now come to light, which is related to ticket distribution and protocol violation.
KSCA’s demand for “extra free ticket” becomes the root of controversy
According to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) had gone against the rules and demanded a large number of additional free tickets. BCCI Secretary Devjit Saikia informed that under general rules, only 15% of the total tickets are given free to any state cricket association. But KSCA placed demands much higher than this limit. According to reports, the union had demanded about 10,000 additional free tickets, which was considered completely against the rules.
Allegations of VIP culture and political pressure
BCCI says that these additional tickets were not asked for the general public but for VIP guests, government officials, ministers and MLAs.
The board objected to this and clarified that IPL is a professional and commercial sports league, in which any kind of “political ticketing” or special VIP pressure cannot be encouraged. When BCCI refused to accept this demand, the dispute deepened.
After the controversy escalated, BCCI took a tough decision and shifted the final match from Bengaluru to Ahmedabad. Now the final match of IPL 2026 will be played on 31 May in Ahmedabad. This decision is not only a sign of administrative strictness, but also shows that the Board no longer wants any laxity in following the rules.
New playoff venues and full schedule
Apart from the final, the venues for the playoff matches have also been changed:
- Qualifier-1: 26 May – Dharamshala
- Eliminator: 27 May – Mullanpur (Punjab)
- Qualifier-2: 29 May – Mullanpur
- Final: 31 May – Ahmedabad
With these changes, BCCI has also made it clear that in future only those cricket associations will host major matches which completely follow the rules.
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