IPL teams that finished as league-stage table toppers and went on to win the title: Full list originally appeared on Cricket News. Add Cricket News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- Teams finishing top of the IPL table won the title in 2020, 2022, and 2024.
- Royal Challengers Bengaluru are the table toppers heading into IPL 2026 playoffs.
- History favours RCB, but topping the table has never guaranteed the trophy before.
RCB sit at the top of IPL 2026, and recent history says that could mean everything
In three of the last six IPL seasons, the team that finished the league stage at the summit went on to lift the trophy.
And now, as Royal Challengers Bengaluru head into the IPL 2026 playoffs as table toppers, they remain firm favourites to continue the trend.
RCB could have finished on 20 points had they beaten Sunrisers Hyderabad on Friday evening. However, they chose to secure the top spot first and get the 166 runs to keep them above SRH and Gujarat Titans on NRR.
MORE: When is Qualifier 1 of IPL 2026? Start date, venue and teams for RCB vs GT playoffs clash
"We were in a position to keep pushing to chase down 255 but ultimately we got the job done and topped the league. It's quite a tricky situation when you've got these conflicting things," head coach Andy Flower said after the game, "winning the game and ensuring we top the league".
"We did discuss the various targets. So I think we needed 166 to confirm top two, 179 to confirm top of the league and obviously 255 to win the game. I thought Venky (Iyer) batted brilliantly up front to give us that impetus.
"And then we wanted the batsmen to get a feel of the game out there and make a decision about whether they wanted to take on the 255 or the 180."
It was a wise decision as they will get two bites of the cherry, and history shows that the team winning Qualifier 1 ends up winning the title in 12 of the last 15 seasons.
When topping the table led to the IPL title
SeasonTable ToppersIPL Champions2020Mumbai IndiansMumbai Indians2022Gujarat TitansGujarat Titans2024Kolkata Knight RidersKolkata Knight RidersIPL 2020 Points Table
In 2020, Mumbai Indians were the team nobody wanted to face. They finished the league stage as the strongest side and carried that authority all the way to the final, clinically winning a fifth IPL title.
RankTeamMatchesWonLostPointsNRR1Mumbai Indians149518+1.1072Delhi Capitals148616-0.1093Sunrisers Hyderabad147714+0.6084Royal Challengers Bangalore147714-0.1725Kolkata Knight Riders147714-0.2146Punjab Kings146812-0.1627Chennai Super Kings146812-0.4558Rajasthan Royals146812-0.569IPL 2022 Points Table
Two years later, the newly formed Gujarat Titans, playing their very first IPL season under Hardik Pandya, topped the standings and then held their nerve through the knockouts to claim a remarkable debut championship.
RankTeamMatchesWonLostPointsNRR1Gujarat Titans1410420+0.3162Rajasthan Royals149518+0.2983Lucknow Super Giants149518+0.2514Royal Challengers Bangalore148616-0.2535Delhi Capitals147714+0.2046Punjab Kings147714+0.1267Kolkata Knight Riders146812+0.1468Sunrisers Hyderabad146812-0.3799Chennai Super Kings144108-0.20310Mumbai Indians144108-0.506IPL 2024 Points Table
In 2024, it was Kolkata Knight Riders who set the standard during the league phase and refused to let go, steamrolling their way to the title without ever really looking like losing it. They lost three matches, and rain spoiled two. Otherwise, the points tally could have been higher.
RankTeamMatchesWonLostPointsNRR1Kolkata Knight Riders149320+1.4282Sunrisers Hyderabad148517+0.4143Rajasthan Royals148517+0.2734Royal Challengers Bengaluru147714+0.4595Chennai Super Kings147714+0.3926Delhi Capitals147714-0.3777Lucknow Super Giants147714-0.6678Gujarat Titans145712-1.0639Punjab Kings145910-0.35310Mumbai Indians144108-0.318The Cricket News Opinion: History helps, but it does not hand you the trophy
Three instances in recent history make a pattern, but they do not make a guarantee. Plenty of table-topping sides across IPL history have stumbled in the knockout. When the margin of error is tight, a single bad day can end everything.
RCB have the momentum, the players, and now the historical wind at their backs. But sport has a habit of ignoring narratives right when they feel most inevitable. The table is a measure of consistency, but the playoffs are a test of something different entirely.
However, their top-two finish guarantees them two shots at reaching the final, which is a significant structural advantage that the third and fourth-placed teams do not enjoy.
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