The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will not be able to play their home games at the DY Patil Stadium as they continue to search for a new home ground for the 2026 season, after major doubts have emerged over the availability of the iconic M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru for the 19th edition of the campaign. Reports had revealed that the franchise had identified Navi Mumbai (5) games and Raipur (2 games) as their new bases for the upcoming campaign, but those plans have hit a roadblock due to the Mumbai Indians (MI) denying them permission.
For those unversed, the Chinnaswamy has not hosted any competitive cricket match since the fatal stampede in Bengaluru last year during RCB's title celebration with safety concerns around the stadium and changes suggested by the D'Cunha committee. While the Karnataka government recently granted them permission to host matches, RCB have not agreed to play there yet, as concerns remain over the arrangements.
As per the rules of the IPL, if a team wants to play their matches in the same city as the home of another team, they have to get permission from the franchise. However, as per a report by theTimes of India,MI have not given permission to RCB and asked them to 'exhaust all other options' before thinking of playing in Navi Mumbai.
A source quoted by the published report claims that MI stated that the five-time champions reasoned that there are several other centres like Indore, Pune, Visakhapatnam, Raipur in the country that do not have an IPL team. The franchise owned by the Ambani family questioned why they had chosen any of those cities and feared that if they gave RCB permission to play at DY Patil, another team could look to play at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai and claimed that two teams playing their home games in the same city would kill the 'sanctity of home territories.'
For those unversed, MI play their home games at Wankhede Stadium but have previously used the Brabourne (2010) and DY Patil (2008) when the city's famous arena was undergoing renovation.
The Brabourne and Wankhede Stadiums are situated near the famous Marine Drive and just 1.1 KM from each other. Meanwhile, the DY Patil Stadium is around 33 KM away in the satellite city of Navi Mumbai.
Also Read:RCB Need Permission From Mumbai Indians To Host Home Games In IPL 2026 - Here Is Why
The same report claims that with DY Patil out of the reckoning, Indore's Holkar Stadium has emerged as the favourite to be RCB's home venue for five matches. Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai has already announced that the 2025 champions will play two games at the Shaheed Veer Stadium in Raipur this season after a meeting with RCB Vice President Rajesh Menon and BCCI treasurer Prabhtej Singh Bhatia in January.
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Aayush Kataria is a Senior Copy Editor at Times Network with four years of experience, having started his career in the organisation. He is a key memb...View More
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