Once home to their IPL matches, the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru has become a painful memory from the past for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Last year, after their IPL 2025 final victory, RCB decided to have a poorly planned trophy celebration in the stadium, which ended in a stampede, killing 11 and leaving many injured. According to an NDTV report, RCB are expected not to return to the venue, unwilling to hold their home matches in Bengaluru for IPL 2026.
Virat Kohli and RCB team during the IPL 2025 trophy celebrations. (AFP)
The report further mentions that RCB hasn’t held any discussions with the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), regarding hosting IPL 2026 games at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. According to reports, Raipur is the top contender for RCB’s home matches, with Indore also being considered.
Even Virat Kohli’s Vijay Hazare Trophy match vs Andhra Pradesh last December was shifted from the stadium at the last moment.
The memory of the stampede last year will be something RCB and its players, such as Virat Kohli, will want to move on from. What made the incident much worse was that, according to reports, RCB’s social media team was informed of the stampede during the trophy celebration in the Instagram Live stream comment section, but paid no heed and continued with the broadcast.
The felicitation was finally cut short after reports of casualties finally reached the officials and players. The Karnataka government also publicly acknowledged that the event was conducted without following any standard operating procedure. The government announced compensation for each of the deceased and pledged to cover all medical expenses of the injured during the incident. RCB also announced a similar compensation for the dead.
Meanwhile, the Rajasthan Royals have also shifted their home venue to Pune. The move comes after disagreements with the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA). The situation was further intensified when an official from RCA made match-fixing accusations against RR, which were denied.