A likely breakthrough has emerged in the impasse over the 2025 Champions Trophy: the ICC and PCB are believed to have reached an agreement in principle to adopt the hybrid model for global tournaments to be held in Pakistan or India until 2027. Such agreement to allow the two to play their games in ICC tournaments organized by the other at a neutral venue.
Although the agreement has been confirmed to Pak Gazette by several sources, the PCB – official host of the Champions Trophy 2025 – has not commented on it, revealing only that discussions are continuing.
It is not yet known whether the hybrid model would be applicable to both men’s and women’s tournaments. In the current ICC business cycle (2024-27), there are three global events scheduled to be held in either country: the Champions Trophy in Pakistan next February, the Women’s ODI World Cup in India in late 2025 and the Men’s T20 World Cup. in 2026, jointly organized by India and Sri Lanka.
Pak Gazette understands that the development emerged on Thursday after meetings between new ICC president Jay Shah and PCB president Mohsin Naqvi. They met in Dubai, on the sidelines of a courtesy board meeting organized by Shah, who was visiting the ICC headquarters in the city for the first time in his new role. A Board meeting to discuss the Champions Trophy is scheduled for December 7.
The PCB’s acceptance of a hybrid model for the eight-team Champions Trophy is believed to depend on a number of conditions. One of them is that a hybrid model should be applicable to all ICC events, including women’s, organized in India and Pakistan until at least 2027, if not the entire cycle of current events until 2031.
Other conditions are said to focus on compensation for potential loss of commercial income due to India’s Champions Trophy games being played at a separate venue abroad. If India were to reach the last 16, then at least one semi-final and potentially the final would likely be played outside Pakistan. The United Arab Emirates and Sri Lanka are among the pioneers in this regard.
It is understood that the PCB has suggested organizing a tri-national series involving India, Pakistan and one other country to offset any financial loss suffered by either board due to matches involving India and Pakistan being played elsewhere.
There are likely to be further exchanges between the two boards and the ICC on the matter, with the final decision likely to be made at the Board’s meeting on December 7.
PCB had planned to start the Champions Trophy on February 19, with Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi as host cities. But, due to the impasse between the PCB and the BCCI – the latter told the ICC last month that it could not travel to Pakistan for the tournament because it did not have permission from the Indian government – the ICC has not been able to publish a schedule for the tournament. event.
Shah promises a ‘new era’ for world football
Shah, who was BCCI secretary from December 2019 to December 1 this year, officially took charge of the ICC, becoming its youngest president at 36. In his first media statement in the ICC role, Shah said the global body was embarking on a “new era” and aimed to take the game to “unprecedented heights” collectively with member countries. While the entire ICC Board was not present in person on Thursday, Shah said he discussed the “initial roadmap and strategies to shape the future” of the game with various directors.
With Shah’s move to the ICC, there has been intrigue over who will replace him as BCCI secretary. Since 2022, Shah had also been the BCCI representative on the ICC Board, where he held influential positions including heading the Commercial and Financial Affairs Committee. While the BCCI has not made any statement on who will be the next secretary, the board’s joint secretary Devajit Saikia was present at the ICC meetings in Dubai this week. So, potentially, Saikia could be the BCCI representative on the ICC Board.
