RCB still hopeful of Chinnaswamy hosting IPL games but has mooted other contingencies including Navi Mumbai and Raipur.
Chinnaswamy remains in line to host RCB home games during IPL 2026.
A “few grey areas” need to be resolved before Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) can make a “responsible decision” about their IPL 2026 home games, but they have left the door open.
The franchise wants clarification on a clause that holds the promoters accountable for any incident that occurs within or near the site. Given the involvement of three other stakeholders—the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), the BCCI, and the Karnataka state government—RCB is seeking precise directions regarding the application of this verdict.
“While our desire is always to play at our home ground, in front of our ardent fans, we want to be thorough in our commitment to further understand the conditions applicable to host matches here and the measures taken to ensure fans safety protocols are met,” RCB said in a statement. “Our goal is to see how best all stakeholders involved can work together.
“From our preliminary conversations, there are still a few grey areas that need to be looked into, and we are considering these parameters and inputs from all stakeholders before arriving at a responsible decision for the team and our fans.”
KSCA president Venkatesh Prasad blamed RCB for starting “meaningful dialogue” with the government and “engaging with them for the smooth conduct of matches” during a news conference presenting the state association’s suggested crowd-control measures for forthcoming games. He claimed that thus far, communication has been “one-sided.”
Prasad reiterated KSCA’s pledge to finish any outstanding work in and around Chinnaswamy Stadium by the end of February in accordance with the compliance roadmap established by the home ministry. In order to prevent similar disasters from happening again, such as the stampede that killed eleven people during RCB’s IPL win celebrations in June, this blueprint was presented to the KSCA.