Sri Lanka has been stripped of its hosting rights for the inaugural ICC Women’s Champions Trophy due to concerns over governmental interference in Sri Lanka Cricket’s (SLC) administration, according to reports.

The tournament was set to be held in the island nation from February 14 to 28 but ICC has decided to move the event to another country, reported the Sunday Times.

SLC is currently being governed by a nine-member Transformation Committee after the country’s government sacked the previous office bearers in April. The committee has the task of implementing administrative reforms in the cricket body.

“Yes, it has been moved out of Sri Lanka,” SLC Transformation Committee Secretary Prakash Shaffter told the Sunday Times.

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“It will be played at another venue, but as of now, I am not sure where it will be played,” he said.

According to the report, a new host is expected to be decided at the next ICC Board meeting.

Apart from the financial losses, losing the hosting rights also puts Sri Lanka’s participation in the tournament in doubt. The event is expected to have the top five ranked teams along with the host.

Sri Lanka is currently World No. 6. If a lower-ranked nation gets hosting rights, it will put Sri Lanka’s qualification at risk.

Sri Lanka has previously missed the chance to host the 2024 ICC Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup after ICC suspended SLC. The tournament was eventually moved to South Africa.

Published on Aug 30, 2026