The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is facing a massive financial loss of USD 85 million (INR 869 crore) after hosting the ICC Champions Trophy, according to reports. This has come at a time when the Pakistan men’s cricket team has been doing terribly on the pitch.
Pakistan had only one home game during the Champions Trophy. They lost their first Group A match against New Zealand in Lahore. The team then proceeded to Dubai for their encounter against India, where they again lost. Their third group match against Bangladesh was abandoned due to rain without a single ball being bowled. These performances resulted in Pakistan’s early elimination from the tournament.
The PCB, as per a report in The Telegraph India, spent around PKR 18 billion (around USD 58 million) to renovate three stadiums in Rawalpindi, Lahore, and Karachi for the Champions Trophy. The expenditure turned out to be 50% more than the initial budget estimate.
The PCB is said to have also spent an extra USD 40 million hosting the event. But the earnings for the board from the tournament were low. PCB got merely around USD 6 million as a share of the hosting charge, and from ticketing and sponsorships, there was minimal income.
The monetary loss has prompted the PCB to cut down its budget considerably. The board lowered match fees for the national T20 championship by 90%, slashing them from Rs 40,000 to Rs 10,000. Reserve player payments were also cut down by 87.5%.
However, according to Pakistan’s Dawn, PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi later stepped in and directed the board’s domestic cricket department to reassess the fee cuts. “The PCB had recently reduced match fees from Rs 40,000 to Rs 10,000 without any official announcement…however PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi intervened, rejecting the decision and directing the board’s domestic cricket department to reassess the matter,” Dawn reported.
To reduce further costs, the PCB relocated player accommodations from 5-star hotels to more affordable places. These economic difficulties put the PCB in a tight corner as they struggle to recover from the sizable losses.
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