Khelo India Youth Games 2025: Schedule, Games, Venue, Qualified Teams & Where To Watch
- Arush Bhardwaj
- May 04, 2025 (UPDATED: May 04, 2025 22:20 IST)
The Khelo India Youth Games 2025 is in full swing as we come closer to the event dates i.e 4th May- 15th May 2025. Bihar is all set to host national level athletes across 28 games including Esports in their homegrounds. Let's have a closer look
Bihar is gearing up to host the 7th Edition of Khelo India Youth Games for the first time across five cities in the state — Patna, Rajgir, Gaya, Begusarai, and Bhagalpur. Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) are the annual national-level multidisciplinary grassroot games in India for two categories, namely under-17-year-old school students and under-21 college students. Esports is also all set to make its debut as a demonstrative sport this year in 5 different game titles: BGMI, Chess, Street Fighter 6, eFootball Mobile & eFootball Console.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to virtually inaugurate the Khelo India Youth Games 2025 on May 4. Bihar's Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, BSSA Director General cum CEO Shri Raveendran Sankaran, and other dignitaries will also be present on the occasion.
Both the opening and closing ceremonies of the event will be held at the Patliputra Sports Complex in Patna.
Khelo India Youth Games 2025 Schedule
Around 10,000 athletes, including coaches, physiotherapists, and other support staff from 28 states and eight union territories, will participate in the sports event this year. Here is the schedule:
| Sport | Dates | Venue | City |
| Archery | May 4-7 | Sandy's Compound Complex | Bhagalpur |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kabaddi | May 4-7 | Indoor Hall, Rajgir Sports Complex- Hall 2 | Rajgir |
| Volleyball | May 4-8 | Indoor Hall, Patliputra Sports Complex | Patna |
| Gatka | May 5-7 | Indian Institute of Management, Bodh Gaya-Open Ground -2 | Gaya |
| Judo | May 5-8 | Gyan Bhawan | Patna |
| Mallakhamb | May 5-8 | Indian Institute of Management, Bodh Gaya-Open Ground-1 | Gaya |
| Swimming | May 5-9 | Swimming Pool, Bihar Institute of Public Administration & Rural Development | Gaya |
| Kho Kho | May 5-9 | Bihar Institute of Public Administration & Rural Development-Open Ground | Gaya |
| Sepaktakraw | May 5-10 | BSAP 5 Indoor Stadium | Patna |
| Shooting | May 5-10 | Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range | New Delhi |
| Football | May 5-14 | Yamuna Bhagat Stadium | Begusarai |
| Football | May 5-14 | IOCL Barauni | Begusarai |
| E-sports | May 6-7 | Patliputra Rail Parishar, Patna. | Patna |
| Cycling | May 6-8 | Velodrome, Indira Gandhi Sports Complex | New Delhi |
| Rugby | May 6-9 | Athletics Ground, Patliputra Sports Complex | Patna |
| Table Tennis | May 6-10 | Indoor Hall, Rajgir Sports Complex -Hall 1 | Rajgir |
| Hockey | May 7-13 | Hockey Stadium, Rajgir Sports Complex | Rajgir |
| Badminton | May 10-13 | Sandy's Compound Complex | Bhagalpur |
| Boxing | May 10-14 | Sports Complex (Railways) | Patna |
| Tennis | May 10-14 | IAS Bhawan | Patna |
| Weightlifting | May 10-14 | Indoor Hall, Rajgir Sports Complex -Hall 4 | Rajgir |
| Gymnastics | May 10-14 | Gymnastics Hall, Indira Gandhi Sports Complex | New Delhi |
| Basketball | May 10-15 | Indoor Hall, Patliputra Sports Complex | Patna |
| Kalaripayattu | May 11-13 | Indian Institute of Management, Bodh Gaya-Open Ground-1 | Gaya |
| Yogasana | May 11-14 | Indian Institute of Management, Bodh Gaya-Open Ground -2 | Gaya |
| Wrestling | May 11-15 | Gyan Bhawan | Patna |
| Fencing | May 11-15 | Indoor Hall, Rajgir Sports Complex- Hall 2 | Rajgir |
| Thang-Ta | May 12-14 | Bihar Institute of Public Administration & Rural Development-Open Ground | Gaya |
| Athletics | May 12-14 | Athletics Ground, Patliputra Sports Complex | Patna |
| Cycling | May 13-14 | Marine Drive | Patna |
On 31 January 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Khelo India School Games at the opening ceremony based on the Guru-Shishya tradition held at Indira Gandhi Arena. From the 2019 events, the Khelo India School Games were renamed to Khelo India Youth Games after the Indian Olympic Association came on board in September 2018.
Performance so far in the Khelo India Youth Games:
Maharashtra has been dominating the Khelo India Youth Games since 2018. They have come out on top and secured #1 finishes in 2019, 2020, 2023 and 2024. Interestingly, in the remaining two seasons in 2018 and 2021, Maharashtra placed 2nd in the overall standings. They currently have 357 Gold Medals, 338 Silver Medals, and 368 Bronze Medals. Let's see if they can continue their streak this time or we'll witness some other state come out on top.
Complete List of Qualified Players and Teams
Let's have a closer look at all the E-athletes from each state who are going to be present in Bihar, standing tall and proud representing their home-ground soil. All these players have been selected through various Open Esports Championships held in their respective states:
| States | BGMI | Street Fighter 6 | Chess | eFootball Mobile | eFootball Console |
| Bihar | Abhinav Kumar Suman (C) | Rohit Kumar | Amrit Raunak | Ritik Kumar | Tanav Raj |
| Himachal Pradesh | Sushant Singh Rangta (C) | TBD. | Pushpender | TBD. | TBD. |
| Telangana | Konappari Lok Pradeep Reddy (C) | Sreesanth | TBD. | TBD. | TBD. |
| Tamil Nadu | Rithin M (C) | TBD. | Pranesh KS | Vibeeshan R | Arnav Rajiv Parikh |
| Arunachal Pradesh | Tolbom Bitin (C) | TBD. | Mito Paron | Tame Tadang Tarh | TBD. |
| Mizoram | Albert Lalnunsanga (C) | TBD. | Lalnunpuia | Lalhruaitluanga Hruaia | TBD. |
| Maharashtra | Varad Rane (C) | Parth Pawar | Ashish Awhale | Parth Varekar | Ronit Sagar Satam |
National Esports Championship & The Way Forward:
We're all expecting the announcement of the National Esports Championship to take place after the commencement of KIYG from the grounds of Bihar. This is the first national-level tournament that will be focused completely on Esports. The National Esports Championship is expected to be held in June this year with more states like Nagaland, Haryana, and Delhi also joining hands to send their best e-athletes. We already have 7 States participating in Esports this year at KIYG i.e. Bihar, Maharashtra, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram.
This is the start of a new era where Esports stand level with any other sport in the country as it's also now recognized as a Priority Sport. “Esports is a sport today. Period. As part of concerted efforts made with the Government of India, both central and state, today esports is included in the Khelo Games - the first validation by the Govt to view it under the same lens as any other sport. UNIV Sportatech is playing the role of a policy-first approach to sensitize State Governments and executing IPs with UNIV Esports. After all, India holds the potential to establish esports as a foundational edifice and a high double-digit-billion-dollar contributor to India’s skill, hardware, and software economic aspirations.”
- said Abhishek Issar (Co-founder, UNIV Sportatech).
Exciting times ahead for all gaming and Esports enthusiasts as we witness History being unfolded. Bihar was the first state to host an open Esports Championship back in 2023, and is now hosting so many different states for the biggest Sports Event in the country- The Khelo India Youth Games.
How To Watch The Khelo India Youth Games:
If you're not in the city to witness the biggest sporting event unfold this year, don't worry there's going to be Online Streaming for all games at KIYG. You can tune into the official channels of Doordarshan or watch it live on TV. This is the first time we'll see Esports games being streamed on a National TV Channel like Doordarshan as well. There will also be live streaming of the event on the official website of the Olympics. The event timings are 11 AM to 6 PM and you can directly watch these teams in action from the Patliputra Rail Parishad, Patna on the 6th and 7th of May 2025.
Top Gaming Personalities: Meet and Greet & More!
The biggest sporting event means - lots of fireworks, opening and closing performances, watch parties, and Meet and Greet. You can get a chance to meet your favorite Gaming Creators and Veterans at The Khelo India Youth Games 2025.
Here's a complete list of gaming celebrities expected to attend the venue:
- MortaL
- Sc0ut
- Destro
- Saumraj
- AnkiiBot
- Spero
- Fyxs
- Darshita
- Vaadhiyar
- Tomboy
- Zgod
The event is free for all of course, which means you don't need to purchase any tickets to enter the venue. We can expect over 3000 people in the stands cheering for their favorite teams. You don't want to miss this one.