The ICC have announced the qualification pathway for the 2025 Champions Trophy which will be contested between eight teams in Pakistan.

The tournament of the supposedly elite ODI teams hasn’t been played since 2017, when Pakistan won the trophy after beating India in the final at The Oval. Following that edition, the competition was scrapped in order to have one major tournament for each format – the T20 World Cup, the ODI World Cup and the World Test Championship. However, in 2021, it was confirmed that the Champions Trophy would make a return for the 2024-31 international cycle, with tournaments scheduled for 2025 and 2029.

The announcement from the ICC has confirmed that only those teams currently participating in the 2023 men’s World Cup will be eligible to qualify for the 2025 Champions Trophy. The teams who finish in the top seven positions of the table in the round-robin stage, along with hosts Pakistan, will automatically qualify for the competition in two years’ time.

That means the bottom-placed two sides will not be able to qualify, regardless of their results in ODI matches after the World Cup. Following the Netherlands’ win over Bangladesh, that may leave England and Bangladesh out of qualification. Given that the decision has come to light just over halfway through the group stage of the ongoing tournament, it will add an extra element to the remaining matches, with semi-final qualification looking likely to be almost decided.

The qualification system also means that the West Indies, who failed to qualify for the 2023 World Cup, will not even get a chance to qualify for the 2025 Champions Trophy. The West Indies won the tournament in England in 2004 and were runners-up in the following edition, but failed to qualify for the last edition, in 2017. Other Full Members Ireland and Zimbabwe will also not be eligible for qualification.

Some international boards were reportedly unaware that Champions Trophy qualification would be at stake during the World Cup. However, Shakib Al Hasan referenced the subject in his post-match press conference after Bangladesh were beaten by the Netherlands in Mumbai, indicating that he was aware of the situation. “Let’s say you have to be in the top eight if you want to play in the Champions Trophy,” he said. “There are still three games to go from that spot.”

However, others were seemingly not as informed, and some boards from nations who missed out on qualification for the 2023 World Cup were also reportedly in the dark.

Under the previous system, teams qualified for the tournament through position in the men’s ODI ICC rankings. The top seven sides in the rankings by the cut-off date, along with the hosts, would qualify for the tournament. ODI rankings also used to dictate qualification for the men’s World Cup until the 2019 edition.

The 2025 edition is scheduled to take place between February and March, with teams split into two groups of four for the first stage of the tournament before the semi-finals and final.

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