COLOMBO - The International Cricket Council (ICC) has officially approved the budget for the 2025 Champions Trophy, which is set to be hosted by Pakistan.
The approval came on the final day of the ICC’s annual meeting, attended by top officials from various cricket boards, including Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Syed Mohsin Raza Naqvi. The budget for the eight-team tournament was crafted by ICC Chief Finance Officer Ankur Khanna and PCB Chief Finance Officer Javed Murtaza.
The Champions Trophy 2025 is slated to take place in Pakistan from February to March. However, India’s participation remains uncertain as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) awaits government clearance to travel to Pakistan. Speculations about a “plan B” or a “neutral venue” have surfaced, suggesting that India might play its matches outside Pakistan.
The PCB remains firm that since the event is hosted by Pakistan, all matches should be played within the country. The ICC annual meeting, held in Colombo from July 19 to 22, saw the PCB delegation advocate strongly for this stance.
Three venues - Karachi, Rawalpindi, and Lahore- have been earmarked for the matches. According to the PCB’s proposed schedule, all of India’s matches would be played in Lahore. The PCB has allocated Rs12.80 billion for upgrading the stadiums: Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium, Karachi’s National Bank Cricket Arena, and Rawalpindi International Cricket Stadium.
With the exception of India, all participating teams have previously played in Pakistan. The PCB asserts that India lacks a valid reason to abstain. The 2025 event will mark the return of the ICC Champions Trophy after an eight-year hiatus; the last tournament in 2017 saw Pakistan triumph over India in the final.
Meanwhile, BCCI Vice President Rajeev Shukla, in a telephonic conversation with Indian media outlet ThePrint, stated that the BCCI has not released any official information regarding their team’s participation in the 2025 Champions Trophy. “We do not know which source gave such information. BCCI has not put out any official information regarding this,” Shukla said.
India previously refused to travel to Pakistan for the ACC Men’s Asia Cup 2023, resulting in a hybrid model for the event with Sri Lanka as a co-host. India has not toured Pakistan since the 2008 Asia Cup due to longstanding political tensions. In contrast, Pakistan has visited India four times in the past 16 years, most recently for the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023.