The 2025 season of Champions Trophy c ontinues to face an uncertain future due to the standoff between India and Pakistan. If the fiasco further escalates, the Pakistan Cricket Board could incur heavy financial losses. Notably, the Board of Control for Cricket in India ( BCCI ) has made their stance clear that the men’s team won’t travel to Pakistan for the forthcoming tournament, scheduled in February and March, next year.
Notably, India and Pakistan last played a bilateral series in 2012-13, since then, they have played each other only in ICC and ACC tournaments. Last year, Pakistan were scheduled to host the Asia Cup, but it was moved to a hybrid model and India played their matches in Sri Lanka after refusal to travel across the border. However, Pakistan travelled to India for the ICC ODI World Cup in the later months of 2023.
How much loss will PCB incur if Champion Trophy 2025 gets postponed?
The Pakistan Cricket Board is maintaining its stance of not hosting the tournament in a hybrid model. However, if the tournament gets either postponed or moved to any other country, the board would have to incur heavy financial losses. According to a report in Cricbuzz, PCB will face ICC sanctions as well as cuts to substantial ICC funding in case of withdrawal. Not only this, but if the tournament is moved or gets postponed, the board can potentially lose USD 65 million as hosting fees.
The report further states that the loss will add up considering that the board has made infrastructure upgrades for the tournament at venues in Karachi, Rawalpindi and Lahore. Moreover, a few other losses would include legal disputes with commercial partners, revenue drops and a decline in ICC’s financial distribution to the members.