The ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which is scheduled to be hosted by Pakistan, is likely to be shifted out of the country or played under a hybrid model. This is due to India’s reluctance to travel to Pakistan due to political and security issues. In a letter to the ICC (International Cricket Council) Chairman Greg Barclay, Iceland Cricket has proposed to host the tournament.
Iceland Cricket is known for its hilarious social media presence. In the letter, Iceland Cricket calls its country “the land of fire and ice” and says that it has an abundant supply of electricity that will help the players fight the cold weather. Iceland Cricket also says that its volcanic ash soils have the highest infiltration rate in Europe, so poor drainage will not be an issue.
Iceland Cricket also gives the example of the USA, which was awarded the rights to host the T20 World Cup 2024 despite not having constructed venues at the time of the rights being awarded.
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Meanwhile, there are reports that the Champions Trophy 2025 could be moved entirely to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) or might be played under a hybrid model similar to the Asia Cup 2023. During the Asia Cup, four matches were held in Pakistan, while the remaining ten games, including all the India matches, were held in Sri Lanka.
We are not people who hold back. We have today issued our bid to host the Champions Trophy of 2025, and we look forward to hearing what Greg Barclay of @ICC has to say about it. pic.twitter.com/EsRzsikCqF
— Iceland Cricket (@icelandcricket) November 27, 2023
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has requested the ICC to sign the Champions Trophy 2025 hosting rights agreements with it and has asked them to compensate the PCB should India refuse to travel to their country.
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India and Pakistan do not have bilateral cricket ties for almost 11 years now. The two teams last played a bilateral series in December-January of 2012-13. Since then, the Asian heavyweights have only locked horns in multinational tournaments such as Asia Cup and ICC events due to India’s reluctance to travel to Pakistan.
The future of the Champions Trophy 2025 is still uncertain. However, it is clear that the tournament will not be held in Pakistan as originally planned.
