IPL 2026 Schedule Announcement Delayed! Dates To Be Confirmed After...

The IPL 2026 season is expected to get underway on March 26, with the final scheduled for May 31, although the complete fixture list is yet to be finalised. During a meeting of the IPL Governing Council on Tuesday, it was reportedly decided that the schedule will be confirmed and released only after the Election Commission announces polling dates for the upcoming assembly elections in five states.

Assembly elections are slated to be held during April–May in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam and Kerala, as well as the Union Territory of Puducherry.

According to a report in Dainik Jagran, the BCCI has proposed as many as 18 venues to host matches during IPL 2026, including locations in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Assam. However, with the Election

Commission yet to declare the election dates, the final schedule remains on hold.

Proposed Venues For IPL 2026

The report added that up to 18 cities are in contention to host matches in the upcoming season. These include Delhi, Lucknow, Dharamsala, New Chandigarh, Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Thiruvananthapuram, Navi Mumbai, Visakhapatnam, Guwahati, Jaipur, Bengaluru, Pune, Ranchi and Raipur.

Uncertainty Over Bengaluru And Jaipur

Meanwhile, the IPL Governing Council has asked Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) to confirm by January 27 whether they will be able to stage their home matches in Bengaluru and Jaipur respectively.

Defending champions RCB are exploring the possibility of hosting their home games at Navi Mumbai’s DY Patil Stadium and in Raipur amid uncertainty over the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. The Bengaluru venue has not hosted any cricket-related activity since a deadly stampede outside the stadium last year.

A subsequent report cited crowd management failures as a major factor behind the tragedy. In response, RCB recently proposed to the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) the installation of 300-350 AI-enabled cameras around the stadium to improve crowd management, offering to bear the cost of the upgrades.

On the other hand, internal issues within the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) have prevented it from convincing the BCCI of its readiness to host IPL matches, casting doubt over Jaipur’s status as a venue for the upcoming season.