Saturday, 5 December, on the venue's clock
Lucas Oil Stadium publishes four times for game day. The South Parking Lot opens at 8 a.m. for ADA parking. The ticket office opens at 4 p.m. Gates open at 6 p.m. Kickoff is at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.
The intervals are published. The ticket office opens 120 minutes before the gates, and the gates open 120 minutes before kickoff. The stadium lists its page window to 11:59 p.m.
This is the 16th annual Big Ten Football Championship Game. The winner takes the Amos Alonzo Stagg Championship Trophy and a place in the College Football Playoff. The conference carries the kickoff at 8 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. CT and 5 p.m. PT.
What to carry in
Every person entering Lucas Oil Stadium needs a ticket, regardless of age. The clear bag policy is in effect, and the stadium applies the NFL's rule. Bags must be clear plastic, vinyl or PVC and must not exceed 12 by 6 by 12 inches.
Medical exceptions run at all gates. Bags holding medical devices and related supplies, including breast pumps, sit outside the clear bag rule and still face security screening. Breast milk and required medication are permitted in a clear container.
Outside food and beverages are not permitted. Guests may bring an empty plastic water bottle and fill it at the stadium's water stations. The building is cashless.
Getting to the gates on foot
Downtown Indianapolis runs a skywalk network that links the convention centre, downtown hotels and the stadium district. The convention centre labels its closing and opening times as event-dependent, with a rule of thumb of about 11 p.m. for the evening lockdown and about 6 a.m. for the morning reopening. A fan planning a late return confirms the night's own hours with the property.
The convention centre publishes 7,100 hotel rooms in downtown Indianapolis and 4,700 rooms connected to the building by skywalk. Its hotels page adds that more than half of downtown's 7,100-plus rooms sit within blocks of the centre and the stadium.
Drivers get more than 73,000 parking spaces downtown on the conference's count, and the conference links a game-day parking page for booking in advance.
Friday, 4 December, with no published clock
The Big Ten Conference dates Fan Fest presented by Dr Pepper to Friday, 4 December, and Saturday, 5 December, at the Indiana Convention Center. The conference assigns more than 200,000 square feet to interactive games, entertainment, Big Ten merchandise, giveaways, food and beverages.
The conference publishes no hours for the festival. The convention centre's own page dates it 5-6 December 2026 with a forecast attendance of 70,000, and carries no hours and no admission terms.
A fan can hold the Friday for the festival and add a clock when the organiser prints one.
Around the weekend
The conference dates its inaugural Big Ten Volleyball Tournament to 20-25 November 2026 at Fishers Event Center. The conference describes that tournament as the start of nearly two weeks of Big Ten activity in and around Indianapolis.
The stadium's event feed for 1 November to 1 February returns eight events. The nearest are Colts vs New York Giants on 29 November, the championship game on 5 December at 8 p.m., and Colts vs Cincinnati Bengals on 26 December. No stadium event falls on Sunday, 6 December.
The convention centre lists the Economic Club of Indiana Luncheon on 2 December, the 38th Combat Aviation Brigade Ball on 5 December, and the Performance Racing Industry Show from 10 to 12 December at a forecast 67,500.
The two nights on the market
Neither the organiser nor the venue publishes a block rate for the festival or the game. A group prices the two nights on the open market, and the conference links its game-day parking page for advance booking.