The ICC Champions Trophy is coming back with its 8th season in 2025. The tournament is scheduled to be played in Pakistan and UAE from February 19 to March 9. The 50-over tournament was inaugurated in 1998 with an idea of promoting the game of cricket among non-Test playing nations. The Champions Trophy was inaugurated with the Cricket World Cup being existed for 23 years. Initially, the tournament was called as ICC Knockout in its first two editions in 1998 and 2000.

The first edition of the Champions Trophy (formerly known as ICC Knockout) was hosted by Bangladesh in 1998, where South Africa emerged as inaugural champions. The second edition was played in Kenya in 2000 where New Zealand went on to win their first-ever ICC title. In 2002, the ICC Knockout Trophy was renamed as the ICC Champions Trophy where top eight cricketing nations in the ICC ranking take part in the tournament. Sri Lanka were hosts in 2002 and the trophy was shared between India and Sri Lanka after the final was washed out due to rain. 

Now, the Champions Trophy is coming back after eight years where the top eighth teams from the 2023 ODI World Cup will be seen participating. The previous edition was won by Pakistan in 2017. Now, the defending champions are set to host the tournament for the first time along with Dubai, where India are scheduled to play all their matches. The tournament will kickstart with a match between Pakistan and New Zealand at Karachi National Stadium on February 19. 

2025 Champions Trophy format and schedule

In the 2025 Champions Trophy, the eight teams are divided into two groups of four. Every team is scheduled to play three matches in the group stage and the top two teams from each group will qualify for the semi-final. The semi final 1 will be played at Dubai International Stadium on February 4 while Semi Final 2 will be played at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on February 5. The final will be played in Dubai or Lahore on March 9. 

The tournament is coming back after eight years and all the eight participating teams will be looking to have a memorable campaign. Along with this, the fans can also take part in the tournament by making predictions at Stake and show support for their favourite team.  

2025 Champions Trophy Schedule

Date

Match

Venue

February 19

Pakistan vs. New Zealand

Karachi

February 20

Bangladesh vs. India

Dubai

February 21

Afghanistan vs. South Africa

Karachi

February 22

Australia vs. England

Lahore

February 23

Pakistan vs. India

Dubai

February 24

Bangladesh vs. New Zealand

Rawalpindi

February 25

Australia vs. South Africa

Rawalpindi

February 26

Afghanistan vs. England

Lahore

February 27

Pakistan vs. Bangladesh

Rawalpindi

February 28

Afghanistan vs. Australia

Lahore

March 1

South Africa vs. England

Karachi

March 2

New Zealand vs. India

Dubai

March 4

Semi-final 1

Dubai

March 5

Semi-final 2

Lahore

March 9

Final

Lahore or Dubai

The 2025 Champions Trophy is around the corner and all the eight teams have started gearing up for the upcoming event. The defending champions Pakistan will be looking to get their hands on the trophy for the second consecutive time in front of their home crowd. Apart from that, the current ODI World champions will also aim to win the third title. 

On the other hand, the 2013 champions, runners-up of the 2017 Champions Trophy and 2023 ODI World Cup, India are also among the favourites to get their hands on the title. The Men in Blue will aim for their second consecutive ICC title in a span of one year after the 2024 T20 World Cup.