Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) lifted their maiden IPL trophy last year under the captaincy of Rajat Patidar. It was a huge moment for the franchise and their journey of defending their IPL 2026 title begins now. The tournament will be played from March 26 to May 31 with a total of 10 teams fighting it out in 84 games with 4 playoff games being played after the league stages. Each team will play 7 home games. RCB will split their 7 home games between 2 cities this season. Chinnaswamy Stadium Gets the Clearance M. Chinnaswamy stadium of Bangalore is ready to host the games. Karnataka government gave clearance and the matches can be played after reviewing safety measures following a stampede incident in June this year which killed 11 persons. So, the stadium is now safe to play high-voltage IPL clashes in front of their fans. Out of the 7 home games, 5 matches will be played in Bangalore's Chinnaswamy stadium which was RCB's home stadium, and it was a sigh of relief for all the RCB fans. Also Read | IPL 2026 Without Fantasy Money: A Silent Sponsorship Crisis Why 2 Matches Will be Played in Raipur? However, even after clearance from the government for Chinnaswamy stadium, RCB will still play 2 matches at Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket stadium in Raipur due to some prior commitments when it was uncertain to host matches at Bangalore. On Jan 13, RCB CEO Rajesh Menon confirmed that two matches will be played at Raipur as an alternative venue and they will continue with their decision to honor it. This Raipur stadium had hosted 6 matches for Delhi Daredevils in 2016, and the last match was played in 2019 between RCB and Rajasthan Royals. Virat Kohli played an unbeaten 54 and was man of the match. Not a New Concept in IPL It is not an unfamiliar concept to see a team play their home matches at two venues during the IPL season as previously observed by Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals in recent editions of the tournament. For RCB, this arrangement will be to uphold their previous commitment and create less confusion, especially as their final fixture list will only be out later this week. With the IPL 2026 just around the corner, the defending champions will be keen on continuing from where they left off last year.