The International Cricket Council (ICC) has agreed to spend about USD 70 million for the Champions Trophy tournament in Pakistan next year. A person familiar with the ICC mentioned on Thursday that the financial and commercial committee of the ICC, led by the BCCI secretary Jay Shah, reviewed and accepted the budget. This budget was created and jointly presented by the Pakistan Cricket Board and the ICC finance department. “The budget is roughly USD 70 million, and only USD 4.5 million is set aside for extra costs,” the source explained.
The decision to approve the overall budget and extra expenses during the recent ICC meeting has led to rumors that extra funds have been reserved in case India does not send its team to Pakistan, and some games need to be moved to other locations.
The source indicated that the additional USD 4.5 million seems quite small compared to the total budget to handle moving games out of Pakistan.
Jay Shah, who leads the Asian Cricket Council, was also in charge when the council decided to give India the T20 Asia Cup in 2025 and Bangladesh the 50-over Asia Cup in 2027.
The source mentioned that for next year’s Asia Cup, India and Pakistan are in the same group and might play each other again in the super four stage of the tournament.
“They could play a third match if they both make it to the final,” he added.
The source also revealed that despite some confusion, last-minute venue changes, and extra costs during the 2023 Asia Cup held in Pakistan and Sri Lanka, the Asian Cricket Council still made a profit.
“The profits were mainly due to the matches between India and Pakistan.”
