The 2025 Champions Trophy is due to take place in February, live on Sky Sports, although the tournament has been disrupted by reports that India will refuse to travel to play in Pakistan.
Pakistan are set to stage a global cricket event for the first time since co-hosting the 1996 World Cup with India and Sri Lanka, with the eight-team tournament currently scheduled for February 19-March 9.
The 50-over competition returns to the international calendar for the first time since Pakistan won the event in 2017, but plans have been threatened by India’s unwillingness to play in the neighbouring country.
How have similar issues been dealt with by the ICC and what could happen with the Champions Trophy? Here’s everything we know so far…
What was the original plan?
Pakistan and India will be joined by Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan in the tournament, with two groups of four teams and the top two from both then progressing to the semi-finals.
The Pakistan Cricket (PCB) earmarked Rawalpindi, Karachi and Lahore as the three host cities, with an initial schedule draft initially leaving India playing all three group games at the same venue.
An official fixture list was due to be announced on November 11, marking 100 days until the Champions Trophy, although the International Cricket Council (ICC) have yet to announce their full schedule.
Why would India not travel to Pakistan?
Political tensions between the countries have led to the India team avoiding travel to Pakistan since 2008, while two have not played each other outside of men’s major tournaments since 2013.
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The 2009 terror attacks on the Sri Lanka team meant no country travelled to play there for next six years, with India the only team not to tour and play there since international cricket returned to Pakistan in 2015.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India [BCCI] informed the ICC that India will not travel to Pakistan, citing not being given permission by the Indian government to travel, with the PCB now asking their own government for further advice.
“We have received an e-mail from the ICC in which they have said that India will not be coming to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy,” the PCB spokesperson said.
Pakistan travelled to India to play in the 2016 T20 World Cup and 2023 50-over World Cup, although a “hybrid model” saw all India matches take place in Sri Lanka when Pakistan hosted the Asia Cup last year.
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Could the ‘hybrid model’ work again?
India’s refusal to play in Pakistan raises the prospect of the tournament being held across multiple countries, with the United Arab Emirates – where the ICC headquarters are – a potential option in any hybrid scenario.
PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi said on November 8 that he was not prepared to accept a shared hosting model and added that “no discussion” of any such proposal has taken place.
”Until now, no discussion of any hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one,” he said. ”The Indian media are reporting it, but no formal communication has reached the PCB.
”If we get a letter from India, I’ll have to go to my government and abide by their decisions. Pakistan has shown great gestures to India in the past, and we’d like to say clearly India shouldn’t expect such friendly gestures from us every time.”
Have teams previously decided against playing?
Australia and West Indies both refused to play matches in Sri Lanka during the 1996 World Cup due to bombings in the country earlier that year, resulting in both matches being awarded to the hosts via walkover.
England forfeited their group match against co-hosts Zimbabwe during the 2003 World Cup and Robert Mugabe’s regime, having asked for the fixture to be moved, with New Zealand pulling out of a match against fellow co-hosts Kenya in the same tournament due to safety concerns.
Nasser Hussain was England’s captain for the 50-over World Cup in 2003, where they were eliminated at the group stage
All those examples were individual matches played in tournaments across multiple countries, leaving the teams with a chance to still reach the knockout stages, whereas the Champions Trophy currently requires India to play all their matches in one country.
What could happen next?
It’s highly unlikely that the ICC would proceed with a tournament without India, given the significant revenue losses it would cause, while moving fixtures into another country could put Pakistan’s participation under threat.
During England’s Test series in Pakistan, England Cricket Board [ECB] chairman Richard Gould said about the scheduling conflict: “If you play the Champions Trophy without India, or Pakistan, the broadcast rights aren’t there, and we need to protect them.”
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Pakistan host West Indies in a two-Test series in January before a mini tri-nation ODI tournament with New Zealand and South Africa, scheduled to take place from February 8 ahead of the Champions Trophy later that month.
Talks are ongoing between the ICC and the countries involved to try and seek a Champions Trophy resolution, with the PCB looking for answers from the BCCI on their decision and time running out to get plans finalised.
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