The Karnataka State Cricket Association’s bid for extra complimentary tickets has forced a reshuffle of IPL end-of-season games away from Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium, with the league’s authorities citing practical problems around ticket availability at the relatively smaller venue.
Key takeaways
- KSCA’s request for an additional 10,057 complimentary passes played a major role in moving the IPL final and playoff matches from Bengaluru.
- The M Chinnaswamy Stadium is described as having capacity for about 35,000 spectators, making the plan difficult to sustain amid high demand.
- IPL playoff matches are scheduled in Dharamsala on May 26 and in New Chandigarh on May 27 and May 29.
- The title match on May 31 will be staged at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
- KSCA’s standard entitlement is 15% of the stadium capacity as complimentary tickets, but the extra allocation would have tightened the number of seats left for general fans.
Why Bengaluru lost hosting rights
Bengaluru was initially set to host the championship game by the usual convention, with Royal Challengers Bengaluru entering as the defending champions. However, IPL chairman Arun Dhumal said it became “untenable” to stage the finale at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium because of the level of demand surrounding complimentary tickets.
The BCCI-linked explanation pointed to KSCA’s entitlement and subsequent request. The KSCA is allowed complimentary tickets equivalent to 15% of the stadium’s capacity. The additional demand raised the figure sharply, with the association asking for a further 10,057 complimentary passes beyond what was already accounted for.
How KSCA’s allocations would have squeezed fan inventory
The association also needed close to 900 passes to satisfy requirements tied to members of the state legislature. KSCA agreed to provide three complimentary tickets each for MLAs and MLCs, which works out to roughly 900 tickets in total.
Further commitments were also expected to add to the complimentary basket. The Expert Committee and additional obligations involving the Government of Karnataka would have demanded another 750 complimentary tickets. On top of that, the plan included a limited number of hospitality complimentary passes over and above the standard 15% entitlement.
With those additions combined, the authorities indicated that the remaining allotment for spectators would have dropped to around 20,000 tickets, a figure viewed as insufficient given the scale of interest usually seen for the IPL final.
The discussion also mentioned that KSCA sought a set of paid tickets at a reduced rate. That package included 3,007 tickets in the P3 stand offered at a concessional price of Rs 2,000 for cricket-playing clubs, along with 900 tickets in the Members’ Stand meant for the spouses and children of members.
Beyond that, the association was said to have planned to buy 1,000 tickets in the M4 stand at an average cost of about Rs 2,000. It also required 3,500 tickets across stands for purchase by life members.
These numbers, the explanation said, supported Dhumal’s view that the Bengaluru venue could not comfortably absorb the combined ticket commitments. Dhumal argued that the (Chinnaswamy) Stadium’s capacity is not large enough and that even for league matches, ticket availability had been limited.
He further noted that the IPL final draws supporters from across the world, which is why the organisers need a larger ticket inventory for fans. In this season’s revised calendar, that larger spread of matches will now be handled away from Bengaluru.
Revised IPL playoff and final schedule
This season’s playoff matches are set to be played in Dharamsala on May 26, while New Chandigarh will host games on May 27 and May 29. The title clash on May 31 will take place at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
