The IPL 2026 knockout stage has a confirmed schedule.
Qualifier 1 kicks off on May 26. The Final wraps it up on May 31.
Three different stadiums host the four matches in between.
IPL 2026 Playoffs Schedule
Here is the complete IPL 2026 playoffs schedule with everything you need to know.
IPL 2026 Playoffs Schedule: All Four Match Dates
The BCCI confirmed the full schedule on May 6, 2026.
| Fixture | Date | Ground | Day of Week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifier 1 | May 26 | HPCA Stadium, Dharamshala | Tuesday |
| Eliminator | May 27 | New International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur | Wednesday |
| Qualifier 2 | May 29 | New International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur | Friday |
| Final | May 31 | Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad | Sunday |
Match start time: 7:30 PM IST for all four fixtures.
Teams finishing 1st and 2nd get a day’s gap after Qualifier 1. The finalists then have two days before the May 31 decider. It’s a tight window, but it’s the same for both sides.
IPL 2026 Playoffs Venues
Three host cities make this playoff setup unusual. The BCCI described the three-venue arrangement as specific to the 2026 season.
| Ground | Host City | Seating Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| HPCA Stadium | Dharamshala, HP | ~23,000 |
| New International Cricket Stadium | Mullanpur, Punjab | ~38,000 |
| Narendra Modi Stadium | Ahmedabad, Gujarat | ~1,32,000 |
HPCA Stadium, Dharamshala – Qualifier 1 (May 26)
Perched at roughly 1,457 metres, the HPCA Stadium gives batters and bowlers alike a different challenge to most IPL venues.
The Dhauladhar mountains sit directly behind the far end.
Capacity is around 23,000. Punjab Kings have used it as a secondary home.
Five 2023 ODI World Cup games were played here, including New Zealand vs India.
At altitude, the ball swings and seams more than at sea-level grounds.
Quick bowlers tend to get extra carry. If the pitch has any life, Qualifier 1 could be a low-scoring, tense contest.
New International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur – Eliminator (May 27) and Qualifier 2 (May 29)
Punjab Kings moved their home base here for IPL 2024.
The ground is officially named the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium.
It seats around 38,000. The pitch is still relatively new, which can make surface behaviour hard to predict.
What is reliable is the drainage: a herringbone system gets the outfield ready to play within half an hour of rain.
That’s a practical benefit when you’re running must-win knockout cricket.
Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad – IPL 2026 Final (May 31)
No cricket stadium in the world is bigger. Capacity: 1,32,000.
Also Check: Largest Cricket Stadium in the World By Boundary
Ahmedabad has now hosted the IPL Final four times, including three in recent years.
| Season | Title Winners | Opposition | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Gujarat Titans | Rajasthan Royals | Won by 7 wickets |
| 2023 | Chennai Super Kings | Gujarat Titans | Won by 5 wickets |
| 2025 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Punjab Kings | Won by 6 runs |
Gujarat Titans are the only side to win the final at this ground as the home team. The last two finals both went to the away side.
The Bengaluru Final That Wasn’t
Bengaluru was set to host the IPL 2026 Final at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. The BCCI pulled the fixture.
Their statement said the Karnataka Cricket Association and local authorities made demands that sat outside BCCI’s standard terms.
Reports pointed to a push from Karnataka MLAs for guaranteed ticket allocations at IPL games, an ask the BCCI wasn’t prepared to accommodate.
Ahmedabad was the replacement. It has the scale, the experience, and the logistics to step in at relatively short notice.
For Royal Challengers Bengaluru, the defending champions, it’s a pointed outcome.
If they reach the final, they’ll be doing it without a home crowd behind them, in the same stadium where they won last year as visitors.
IPL Playoffs Format: Quick Explanation
The IPL doesn’t use a straight semi-final setup. It runs a Page playoff system, which gives the top two teams on the points table an extra shot at the Final.
| Match | Who Plays | Stakes |
|---|---|---|
| Qualifier 1 | 1st vs 2nd | Winner goes to the Final. Loser gets another chance. |
| Eliminator | 3rd vs 4th | Winner advances. Loser is eliminated. |
| Qualifier 2 | Q1 loser vs Eliminator winner | Winner goes to the Final. Loser exits. |
| Final | Q1 winner vs Q2 winner | IPL 2026 champion decided. |
The team finishing 1st or 2nd can lose one match and still reach the Final.
A team finishing 3rd or 4th has zero margin. Every game from here is do-or-die for them.
That safety gap is exactly why finishing in the top two matters so much in the league stage.
How to Watch the IPL 2026 Playoffs?
- TV broadcast: Star Sports carries all four playoff matches live across India.
- Online streaming: JioHotstar is the official streaming partner of IPL 2026. Every match is live on the JioHotstar app and website.
Start time for all matches: 7:30 PM IST. The Final falls on a Sunday, May 31.
FAQs
- When is the IPL 2026 Qualifier 1?
Qualifier 1 is on Tuesday, May 26, at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala. It starts at 7:30 PM IST.
- Which stadium is hosting the IPL 2026 Final?
Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, hosts the Final on Sunday, May 31.
- How many cities are hosting the IPL 2026 playoffs?
Three: Dharamshala (Qualifier 1), Mullanpur (Eliminator and Qualifier 2), and Ahmedabad (Final).
- Why was the IPL 2026 Final shifted from Bengaluru?
The BCCI cited demands from the Karnataka Cricket Association and local authorities that exceeded their standard terms. Media reports linked it to a controversy over MLA ticket allocations.
- Who are the defending IPL champions going into the 2026 playoffs?
Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the IPL 2025 title at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
- What is the IPL Page playoff system?
It’s a format where the top two teams on the points table each get two chances to reach the Final, while the third and fourth placed teams must win every match to survive.
Conclusion:
The IPL 2026 playoffs take place across six days and three venues.
Dharamshala opens proceedings on May 26.
Mullanpur handles the Eliminator and Qualifier 2. Ahmedabad closes it all out on May 31.
The league table battle isn’t over yet. But when it is, these are the fixtures that decide the champion.