IPL 2026: Final shifted from Bengaluru to Ahmedabad sparks massive backlash as fans troll BCCI decision
The final will happen on May 31 at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad.
4 Min Read
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..
— Navneet 🚩 (@MSDian067) May 6, 2026
No relevancy for RCB & Chinnaswamy despite winning the trophy last year 😭🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣pic.twitter.com/bQagjY1DPY
They are scared of RCB fans celebration? 🥺
— Yuva (@Yuva_Sanchari) May 6, 2026
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,…
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.
— Rohit Sutrave (@imsrohit18) May 6, 2026
I'm actually feeling depressed that Chinnaswamy has missed out on hosting the final💔💔
RCB fans and Bengaluru fans should simply boycott attending the finals
— King Vegeta (@King_vegeta6) May 6, 2026
It hurts to see the IPL final not being held at Chinnaswamy, but as an RCB fan, my hopes of defending the title have grown higher.
— 𝐊𝐨𝐡𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭!𝟎𝐧_👑🚩 (@bholination) May 6, 2026
Double it up @RCBTweets. 🔥
They could have considered atleast one playoffs for RCB in Raipur
— Harish Kumar (@harish21ers) May 6, 2026
Trophy finally came but no home final, bittersweet for RCB fans 😭
— Marvellous Sports (@MarvellousSport) May 6, 2026
So rcb gets no playoffs 🤡
— ಬಾಲ ನರೇಂದ್ರ (@wyte_johnny) May 6, 2026
There was no reason to host finals at Narendra Modi Stadium once again.
— The Reverse Sweep (@trspodcastt) May 6, 2026
Could have given to Eden Gardens or Wankhede or any other stadium if they didn't want to host at Chinnaswamy.
Nothing against Narendra Modi Stadium but it's becoming boring now.#IPL2026
It's a shame @bcci @IPL, lame reason to shift final match to Ahmedabad. #RCB #IPL2026
— MNV Gowda (@MNVGowda) May 6, 2026
This is favoritism, why not final in hyd, Chennai, Mumbai or Kolkata? @venkateshprasad @kscaofficial1 what are you doing? It's a big set back.
We want final back to bengaluru.
Yesterday told this and Bengaluru lost the venue because of their MLA's demand @RCBTweets https://t.co/SLX8XCI6S1
— vipul kashyap (@kashyapvipul) May 6, 2026
Fans get screwed because these greedy people want our tickets too now. Wow, well played.
— Manya (@CSKian716) May 6, 2026
The KSCA and state government didn’t help with that ticketing mess playing out so publicly. They gave those in charge even more reason to take the IPL final away.
— Shashank Kishore (@captainshanky) May 6, 2026
Being an RCB supporter, it hurts to see my team playing its matches in Raipur and Ahmedabad.
— Amit Kumar Sindhi (@AMIT_GUJJU) May 6, 2026
It is being alleged that politicians in the Karnataka state demanded free IPL tickets, free IPL passes and other perks.
You earn crores every month and still want free passes for an IPL…
GT haven't even reached the finals in the last 2 seasons, yet IPL final is being scheduled in Ahmedabad again.
— Vijay Anaparthi (@VijayCricketFan) May 6, 2026
If Chinnaswamy isn't available, what about the home grounds of the other teams that actually made it to the final?
Ahmedabad is now going to host 4 out of the last 5 IPL Finals. There is a limit to this shamelessness by BCCI coz they always find a silly excuse. Why not give it to Eden Gardens this time, which was supposed to host the Final in 2025? https://t.co/JkAZ3NUfnb
— Aditya Saha (@Adityakrsaha) May 6, 2026
Beyond my understanding! Why in Ahmedabad? What is the Logic behind this ?? #IPL2026 https://t.co/bpONCCr8Y6
— Ankan Kar (@AnkanKar) 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
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