The International Cricket Council (ICC) has confirmed that all the upcoming ICC tournaments during the 2024-2027 rights cycle will be played at a neutral venue. This comes before the announcement of the Champions Trophy which will be the first tournament of the cycle to be played in a neutral venue.
Sports Tak earlier reported that All India-centric matches in upcoming Champions Trophy 2025 matches will be played in Dubai and there was an in-principle deal between the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) that they will not travel to the rival nation for the ICC events till 2026. They will play at a neutral venue.
As per close sources to Sports Tak, India-centric matches in Champions Trophy 2025 will take place in Dubai along with the semifinal and final and if India fails to qualify for the knockouts then the finale and semifinal will take place in Lahore and Rawalpindi.
ICC confirmed that this (India and Pakistan hybrid model in-principle deal) will apply to the upcoming ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 (hosted by Pakistan), set to be played in February and March 2025, as well as the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 (hosted by India) and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 (hosted by India and Sri Lanka).
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It was also announced that the PCB has been awarded hosting rights of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in 2028, where neutral venue arrangements will also apply.
Sports Tak also reported that ICC is yet to decide the venue for the knockouts and final of the T20 World Cup 2026 as all Pakistan-centric matches including India vs Pakistan matches will take place in Colombo.
The eight-team event will feature Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, New Zealand, and South Africa, alongside hosts Pakistan.
