Ahmedabad:The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Wednesday announced that Ahmedabad will host the IPL final on May 31 for the second consecutive season, replacing the originally designated venue of Bengaluru.

Qualifier 1 has been allotted to Dharamsala, while New Chandigarh will host the remaining two playoff matches.

As per convention, Bengaluru was expected to host the final since defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru are based there. Ahmedabad had also hosted the IPL finals in 2022, 2023 and 2025.

In a statement, the BCCI said Bengaluru was initially chosen as the final venue, but the match was shifted due to certain requirements raised by the local association and authorities that were “beyond the scope of BCCI’s established guidelines and protocols.” The Board, however, did not specify the exact reasons behind the change.

The BCCI also stated that the playoff matches have been spread across three venues this year as a special arrangement due to “operational and logistical considerations.” DeshGujarat