BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia revealed why Bengaluru has been sidelined from hosting the Playoffs of the 2026 Indian Premier League.
Saikia mentioned that they had received information of a “higher-than-normal” number of complimentary tickets being claimed by the Karnataka State Cricket Association.
"As per IPL protocol, we are required to provide only 15 per cent of the total seating capacity as complimentary tickets to the host association. This constitutes the standard protocol; all host state associations
receive a 15 per cent allocation of their total capacity in the form of complimentary tickets," Saikia said, speaking to the press.
“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 per cent,” he added.
He specified that they had written to the KSCA about the matter, and received a response in which the organisation demanded additional allocation of tickets above the 15 per cent limit.
“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 per cent complimentary ticket quota, they would require an additional, substantial allocation of tickets for their members, affiliated clubs, and various others,” Saikia said.
Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivakumar had stated ahead of the start of the season that each Karnataka MLA would get three complimentary tickets for IPL games in Bengaluru, along with two for international games, with options to purchase two more. This decision came after discussion with KSCA representatives.
“Most surprisingly, they also requested tickets for their local Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) and Members of the Legislative Council. And also to the government of Karnataka, 700 complimentary tickets. Thus, over and above the 15 per cent allocation, they were demanding approximately 10,000 additional tickets,” he added.
Before the start of the season, it was reported that Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium would host the final and one other playoff match in the 2026 IPL. The BCCI have announced that the final is to be hosted in Ahmedabad, while the other playoff matches are to be played in Dharamshala and Mullanpur.
