Defending IPL champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will pay special tribute to the 11 people who lost their lives in last year’s stampede by keeping 11 seats unoccupied at the Chinnaswamy Stadium this season.
On 4 June 2025, as many as 11 people were killed in a stampede outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium during RCB’s title victory celebrations. More than 50 other people were injured in the event, which was attended by approximately 300,000 people.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru defeated Punjab Kings by six runs in the final of IPL 2025 in Ahmedabad on June 3 to clinch their first ever IPL title.
RCB will vacate 11 seats at the Chinnaswamy Stadium
“In memory of the 11 fans we lost on June 4, the players will wear the number 11 jersey for training, match day, pre-match training.
“So all the players will wear the number 11 jersey, not for the game but for training,” RCB CEO Rajesh Menon said at a press conference on Tuesday.
“Also, they will wear a black armband on the day. We are also looking at having 11 permanent seats empty forever at Chinnaswamy Stadium. That’s for 11 fans who will be with us forever. That’s a quick update on what we’re doing this year,” he added.
The incident last June meant Bengaluru missed out on hosting the 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup and the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup matches.
In December 2025, former Indian cricketer Venkatesh Prasad was appointed as the new president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) and led the extensive renovation of the Chinnaswamy Stadium.
He worked with the Karnataka government and the BCCI to help secure clearance for the stadium to host the 2026 IPL games.
Among the new security measures, the KSCA built six to 13 new gates and widened the existing entrance gates by at least nine meters. Around 500 CCTV cameras have been installed inside the stadium and a new QR code-based e-ticketing system has been introduced.
It was only recently that an expert committee appointed by the Karnataka government conducted safety and structural audits of the stadium and gave approval to host matches. RCB will play five home matches in Bengaluru and two more matches in Raipur.
Rajesh Menon thanks the civil servants
“I would like to thank Karnataka State Government, CM, DCM, HM, Commissioner and Joint Commissioner. We have SOP from Karnataka High Court to follow with KSCA, RCB and DNA under Karnataka State Police,” Menon said.
He also described the CCTV cameras installed in the stadium, 300–250 of which are powered by artificial intelligence.
“It can alert in real time if there is a queue build-up; it can alert all the police and liaison authorities,” Menon said, adding that they reconfigured all entrances and exits based on advice from the police.
The Rajat Patidar-led side will begin their IPL title defense with a home match against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Bengaluru on March 28.
