Iceland to host Champions Trophy 2025? European Nation sends official bid to ICC!

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The Iceland Cricket Association has made an official enquiry about hosting the ICC Champions Trophy in 2025.

Pakistan is the original host of the tournament but news has emerged that the tournament may well be moved out of there. Pakistan's political tussle with India means if the Indian government denies players entry into Pakistan, the tournament may be shifted.

It can be completely taken away from Pakistan or a hybrid model will be approached, much like the Asia Cup this year.

Amid the pickle, the Iceland Cricket Association has shown their interest in hosting the event. The European nation took to social media and expressed their wish to conduct the event in a hilarious post.

"The Icelandic Cricket Association would like to place on record our interest in hosting the Champions Trophy tournament in 2025, which was scheduled to be played in Pakistan in the February and March of that year. We are responding opportunistically and enthusiastically to the widespread rumours that the tournament will not be played in Pakistan due to the concerns raised by one Board that there are political and safety risks," a portion of their statement read.

"We are hearing that a hybrid model will be preferred for the tournament. Although it is unclear to anyone exactly what this means in practice, we are interpreting it as a clarion call for our land of fire and ice to make a bid to host the tournament. We have the intent, the fan following and the available rocky land to host an excellent tournament."

They admitted the temperature can be an issue but confirmed they will keep the players warm with electric panel heaters.

"Although weather conditions in Iceland can at best be described as sub-optimal during the months of February and March, we also have an abundant supply of electricity and several electric panel heaters to always keep the players warm. Our volcanic ash soils are reported to have the highest infiltration rates of any in Europe, so the poor drainage commonly found in Asia will be no issue here," the statement added.

"Critics of our proposals may wish to highlight the absence of any cricket grounds beyond what some analysts have labelled as "crappy windswept public parks". This need not detract from our proposal, and we note with keen interest the ICC's willingness to embrace the bid of the United States for the upcoming T20 World Cup of 2024, despite the complete absence of constructed venues at the time the hosting rights were awarded.

If you would like to discuss our proposal in more detail, we are happy to communicate online and we are also willing to develop a 3D virtual reality model of our future cricket grounds," the statement concluded.

Although this looks like a formal/informal appeal to ICC for hosting Champions Trophy, it is highly likely Iceland won't be getting the Champions Trophy hosting rights. And if they somehow convince ICC, be ready for a snowy show!