International Cricket Council approves Budget for 2025 Champions Trophy: Report…

The International Cricket Council has officially approved the budget for the upcoming 2025 Champions Trophy that is scheduled to be held in Pakistan. The decision was taken during the ICC’s annual meeting in Sri Lanka, where PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi was also present. 

According to sources, the budget was prepared jointly by ICC and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). This Champions Trophy marks the return of the tournament to the host country after  a seven years ban with Pak being the defending champions.

It was proposed by the council that the tournament matches be played at Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi. All the matches involving India including the most anticipated Ind vs Pak encounter are to be played in Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium. The ICC have decided to forward this schedule to all the respective member boards including the BCCI.

The tournament is expected to feature teams from India, Pakistan, Australia, New Zealand, England, South Africa, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh. The budget revealed the allocation of 12.80 Billion Pakistani Rupees or INR 3.85 Billion that was done at the Annual General Meeting of the ICC at Colombo, Sri Lanka held between 19th – 22nd July 2024.

It is reported that India is likely to skip the tournament if it’s held in Pak, and have requested a hybrid model so that their matches are played at different venues other than in Pakistan. If that is to be the case the backup hosts are Sri Lanka and UAE that have been decided in the AGM of the ICC.