The budget for the Champions Trophy 2025 was recently revealed. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) presented the budget to the ICC during the annual meeting in Sri Lanka mere weeks ago. Around $70 million (Rs 586 crore) was to be allocated for 15 matches played at three venues in Pakistan.
That number looked awfully large for an event whose runtime isn’t even 3 weeks. A rather peculiar thing was another $4.5 million (Rs 37 crore) being allocated for additional expenses. They apparently are making a contingency plan for a change in venue if India doesn’t travel to Pakistan, according to Cricbuzz, and the budget included the costs of scheduling India’s matches outside of Pakistan.
PCB’s Plan B for Champions Trophy
Speculations were already swirling around, but now they’ve been confirmed. The approval note from the Chief Executive Committee (CEC) clearly states it. “PCB has signed Host Agreement and has worked with management to draft an event budget which is submitted F&CA for approval. Management has also approved an estimate of the increase in the cost of staging the event if it is necessary to play some matches outside Pakistan.”
However, as of now, it isn’t certain that these venues could be. Previous reports have suggested that the UAE could be the co-host of the Champions Trophy. Something similar happened during the Asia Cup 2023, when India’s refusal to play in Pakistan forced the PCB to announce Sri Lanka as the co-host.
India’s draft schedule for Champions Trophy 2025
| Match | Date | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| India vs Bangladesh | Thursday, February 20 | Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore |
| India vs New Zealand | Sunday, February 23 | Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore |
| India vs Pakistan | Saturday, March 1 | Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore |
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