Pakistan will host the Men’s Champions Trophy in 2025, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Tuesday.
This will be the first time in more than two decades that Pakistan will be hosting a mega cricketing event. The last time Pakistan hosted a global cricket tournament was the 1996 Men’s Cricket World Cup, which it co-hosted with India and Sri Lanka. The final was staged at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore with Sri Lanka clinching the title.
The 2009 ICC Champions Trophy was also scheduled to be hosted by Pakistan but it was moved to England after three countries — Australia, England and New Zealand — refused to play in Pakistan due to security reasons.
Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Ramiz Raja showed his content on the announcement, saying that it was a matter of great pride that the country would host an ICC mega event.
“By allocating a major global event to Pakistan, the ICC has expressed complete confidence and faith in our management, and operational capabilities and skills,” Ramiz said soon after the announcement. He added that the 2025 event will be a “boon for millions of home fans” who will watch their “favourite international players from close quarters”.
India will host the next Champion Trophy edition to be played in 2029, according to the ICC.
Competitive bidding process
ICC used a competitive bidding process to select the hosts. The bidding was overseen by a Martin Snedden-led board sub-committee, which also included Sourav Ganguly and Ricky Skerritt. The ICC Board accepted the recommendations of the committee who conducted a thorough review of each bid along with the ICC management.
ICC Chair Greg Barclay was happy that the new method of “competitive bidding” was concluded successfully for the very first time by the game’s governing body.
US to host first ever ICC mega event
Meanwhile, the United States will host an ICC mega event for the first time ever when they welcome cricketing teams from around the world for the 2024 T20 World Cup. West Indies will co-host the event with the US.