ICC approves budget of 70 Million USD for Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan - Reports
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has approved a budget of $70 million for the 2025 Champions Trophy in Pakistan as per reports in the Times of India.
The ICC's financial and commercial committee, chaired by BCCI secretary Jay Shah, reviewed the budget prepared jointly by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the ICC finance department before giving the go-ahead according to an ICC source.
The source said as quoted by the Times of India:
"The approximate budget is around USD 70 million and only USD 4.5 Million has been allocated as additional expenses."
It is widely speculated that there could be backup funds if India decides not to send their players to participate in Pakistan, forcing a shift in venues for their matches.
The source further mentioned the indications are that the additional USD 4.5 million is substantially less compared to the overall budget for covering the potential movement of matches from Pakistan.
It was recently announced that the 2025 Asia Cup will be played in the T20 format in India and the 2027 edition in the ODI format in Bangladesh.
However, India's playing in Pakistan in the 2025 Champions Trophy remains unlikely and the tournament could likely follow the hybrid model like the 2023 Asia Cup.
2025 Champions Trophy will be the ninth edition of the event
The 2025 Champions Trophy will be the ninth edition of the tournament with eight teams divided into two groups.
The qualification for the event was done based on where the teams finished in the 2023 ODI World Cup. While India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and New Zealand are part of Group A, Australia, England, South Africa, and Afghanistan are in Group B.
The two teams from each group will advance to the semi-final with the winners facing off in the grand finale.
The tournament hasn't happened since 2017, when Pakistan upstaged India in a one-sided final to win their first Champions Trophy title.
Only Australia has outrightly won the event twice in 2006 and 2010. Meanwhile, a washed-out final saw India share the trophy with Sri Lanka in 2002 before their outright win in 2013.
South Africa, New Zealand and the West Indies are the other Champions Trophy winners in 1998, 2000, and 2004, respectively.