Will Chinnaswamy host RCB’s home games in IPL 2026? Karnataka govt reportedly demands safety audit to find out

It’s been nearly six months since Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s celebratory parade at their home ground of the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru went haywire and resulted in a stampede that left 11 dead and more than 50 injured. The tragic incident not only cast a shadow on RCB’s maiden Indian Premier League title earlier in the summer, it also led to a turmoil within the Karnataka State Cricket Association with multiple high-profile officials putting in their papers.

The iconic venue was also scheduled to host key games in the recently-concluded ICC Women’s World Cup, including one semi-final and the final (subject to Pakistan’s participation), only to get replaced by Navi Mumbai's DY Patil Stadium just a month before the opening fixture. This was after the KSCA failed to obtain police clearance to host matches, with the Karnataka High Court getting involved in the Chinnaswamy stampede case.

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As a result, there are doubts whether the venue will be able to host RCB’s home games in the 19th season of the Indian Premier League next year. The Siddaramaiah-led Karnataka state government, meanwhile, has ordered a comprehensive structural fitness test at the venue if the defending IPL champions are to play in front of their home crowd next year instead of having to relocate to a different ‘home’.

Bengaluru’s PWD orders KSCA to conduct safety assessment

According to a report on India Today, the Public Works Department (PWD) has issued a notice to the KSCA, which is likely to have former India pacer Venkatesh Prasad as its president in the near future, asking them to submit a detailed structural safety report of the stadium.

The notice requires the state cricket association to carry out an assessment by NABL-certified experts only in order to meet the highest technical standards. KSCA, which is headquartered at the Chinnaswamy, will also have to prove that the venue, which is spread across 17 acres of PWD-leased land in the heart of the ‘Garden City’, will also to prove that the venue is fit to host large crowds for cricket matches – whether international or IPL fixtures.

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Besides being stripped of hosting rights in the Women’s World Cup, Chinnaswamy has also not been included in the list of venues for the Men’s T20 World Cup that will be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka from 7 February to 8 March.

The venue will also not be hosting games in India’s home season, which got underway with a two-match Test series against West Indies in October and concludes with a five-match T20I series against New Zealand in January right before the T20 World Cup.