IPL 2026: Full Schedule, Captains List, Prize Money & Venues Revealed – Don’t Miss!

• The IPL 2026 season is all set to bring another thrilling edition of the Indian Premier League.
• With top players, intense rivalries, and packed stadiums, fans are eagerly waiting for the action to begin.
• It will take place from March 28 to May 31, featuring 10 teams battling it out in 84 matches across India.
• The defending champions, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), will enter the tournament with high confidence after securing their maiden IPL title in 2025, adding extra excitement to the upcoming season.

🏏Tournament Overview:

• The IPL 2026, officially known as TATA IPL 2026, marks the 19th edition of the Indian Premier League, organized by the Board of Control for Cricket in India(BCCI).
• Widely regarded as the world’s biggest T20 cricket league, the tournament continues to attract top players and massive global viewership.
• This season features 10 franchises: Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Delhi Capitals (DC), Gujarat Titans (GT), Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), Mumbai Indians (MI), Punjab Kings (PBKS), Rajasthan Royals (RR), Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).

🏏 What is the Format of IPL 2026?

• The IPL 2026 season has been expanded to a total of 84 matches (80 round-robin and 4 playoff matches), with each of the 10 teams playing 16 matches in the round-robin stage, an increase from 14 matches per team in 2025.
• Each team will play 16 matches during the league stage, facing different opponents in a competitive round-robin format.
• The tournament follows a double round-robin and playoffs system, ensuring every team gets enough opportunities to compete for a place in the knockout stage. At the end of the league phase, the top four teams on the points table will qualify for the playoffs.

Founding franchises (launched in 2008):

1. Chennai Super Kings (CSK)
2. Delhi Capitals (DC; Delhi Daredevils until 2019)
3. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)
4. Mumbai Indians (MI)
5. Punjab Kings (PBKS; Kings XI Punjab until 2021)
6. Rajasthan Royals (RR)
7. Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB; Royal Challengers Bangalore until 2024)

Newer franchises:

1. Gujarat Titans (GT; joined in 2022)
2. Lucknow Super Giants (LSG; joined in 2022)
3. Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH; joined in 2013)

The playoffs will follow the usual IPL structure:

• Qualifier 1: Played by the teams placed first and second in the IPL table after the round-robin stage. The winner goes through to the final, whereas the loser must play a second qualifier.
• Eliminator: Played by the third- and fourth-place teams in the IPL table. The winner advances to the second qualifier.
• Qualifier 2: Played by the losing team from Qualifier 1 and the winning team from the Eliminator, with the winner advancing to the final.
• Final: Championship match played by the teams that won Qualifier 1 and Qualifier 2.

All matches will be played in the fast-paced Twenty20 (T20) format, known for its high scoring and exciting finishes.

Venues:

• The BCCI has announced a partial list of venues for the first phase of the 2026 competition, designating home stadiums for the 10 IPL franchises.
• Some teams have been assigned two home venues:
• RCB’s home venues are Bengaluru and Raipur
• PBKS will play its home matches in New Chandigarh and Dharamshala.
• RR has Jaipur and Guwahati as home venues

Key Venues : The matches will be played across the following major stadiums:

• M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru (RCB)
• Eden Gardens, Kolkata (KKR)
• Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai (MI)
• M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai (CSK)
• Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad (GT)
• Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, New Chandigarh & HPCA Stadium (PBKS)
• Barsapara Stadium, Guwahati & Sawai Mansingh Stadium (RR)
• Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow (LSG)
• Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium (SRH)
• Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium (RCB secondary venue)

Key Players and Auction Highlights:

• The IPL 2026 auction was held on December 16, 2025, in Abu Dhabi, where franchises made strategic moves to strengthen their squads for the upcoming season.
• Several big names attracted attention, along with emerging talents who secured impressive deals.
• Each IPL team is allowed to field a roster with a maximum of 25 players, including up to 8 overseas players, in a single tournament.
• The 10 teams retained 173 players in total from the 2025 sqards, with 350 additional players available to be signed through the IPL 2026 auction held on December 16, 2025, for the 77 remaining places.
• Some player trades before the auction included Ravindra Jadeja (CSK to RR), Sanju Samson (RR to CSK), and Mohammad Shami (SRH to LSG).

Notable Player Signings in IPL 2026:

• Cameron Green (Australia) – Bought by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for ₹25.20 crore, the most expensive overseas signing in IPL history.
• Matheesha Pathirana (Sri Lanka) – Also to KKR, for ₹18 crore, strengthening their pace attack.
• Prashant Veer (India, uncapped) – Signed by Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for ₹14.20 crore, one of the most expensive uncapped players.
• Kartik Sharma (India, uncapped) – Another ₹14.20 crore signing by CSK, highlighting their focus on young Indian talent.
• Auqib Nabi Dar (India) – Picked up for ₹8.4 crore, a surprise package of the auction.
• David Miller (South Africa) – Early auction signing, adding experience to the middle order.
• Kyle Jamieson (New Zealand) – Bought by Delhi Capitals (DC), adding depth to their bowling unit.

Full List of IPL 2026 Captains:

Expected Prize Distribution:

• The IPL 2026 winner is expected to receive ₹20 crore, with the runner-up earning around ₹12.5 crore, similar to previous seasons.

Based on historical trends and the 2025 IPL season, the prize money for IPL 2026 is projected as follows:

• Winner: ₹20 crore, awarded to the franchise that wins the final match.
• Runner-up: ₹12.5 crore, given to the team finishing second.
• Semifinalists: Teams finishing third and fourth are expected to receive approximately ₹7 crore and ₹6.5 crore, respectively.
• Individual Player Awards: Special awards for outstanding performances, such as the Orange Cap (most runs), Purple Cap (most wickets), Most Valuable Player, and Emerging Player of the Year, typically range from ₹10 lakh to ₹15 lakh.

Schedule Update 2026:

• The first phase of the tournament is scheduled from March 28 to April 12, 2026.
• The remaining fixtures will be announced later, considering the upcoming state elections in Assam, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal.

Source: iplt20.com.

Who Won IPL 2025?

• RCB defeated Punjab Kings by 6 runs to win IPL 2025 in a sensational display of T20 cricket.
• This marks the first IPL title for RCB in 18 years. This was the 4th IPL final for RCB and their first title under the leadership of Rajat Patidar.

All about Indian Premier League 2025

IPL Winners List (2008-2025)

The table below covers the IPL winners list:

Year	Winner	Runner-Up
2008	Rajasthan Royals	Chennai Super Kings
2009	Deccan Chargers	Royal Challengers Bangalore
2010	Chennai Super Kings	Mumbai Indians
2011	Chennai Super Kings	Royal Challengers Bangalore
2012	Kolkata Knight Riders	Chennai Super Kings
2013	Mumbai Indians	Chennai Super Kings
2014	Kolkata Knight Riders	Kings XI Punjab
2015	Mumbai Indians	Chennai Super Kings
2016	Sunrisers Hyderabad	Royal Challengers Bangalore
2017	Mumbai Indians	Rising Pune Supergiant
2018	Chennai Super Kings	Sunrisers Hyderabad
2019	Mumbai Indians	Chennai Super Kings
2020	Mumbai Indians	Delhi Capitals
2021	Chennai Super Kings	Kolkata Knight Riders
2022	Gujarat Titans	Rajasthan Royals
2023	Chennai Super Kings	Gujarat Titans
2024	Kolkata Knight Riders	Sunrisers Hyderabad
2025	Royal Challengers Bangalore	Punjab Kings

Which team has won the most IPL trophies?

• Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings have each won five titles, while Kolkata Knight Riders have secured three titles.
• Gujarat Titans, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Rajasthan Royals, Deccan Chargers and Royal Challengers Bangalore have each won one title.

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