The ICC Board ratified India as the replacement host for the inaugural ICC Women's Champions Trophy 2027 on September 1, 2026, removing Sri Lanka from a tournament it had originally been awarded. Sri Lanka Cricket stands to lose an estimated US$20 million in potential revenue as a direct result of the decision.
The ICC pointed to governance failures at Sri LankaCricket as the basis for the change, specifically the absence of an elected administration and the continued presence of political interference
in the running of the sport. Sri Lanka Cricket has been administered by a government-appointed Transformation Committee, and the ICC had already moved to restrict SLC representation at its Board meetings before the hosting decision was taken.
Before settling on India, the ICC evaluated Bangladesh and South Africa alongside India as potential replacement venues for the tournament. Matches will be held across two venues, the Cricket Club of India ground in Mumbai and the Vadodara International Cricket Stadium. The tournament runs from February 14 to 28, 2027.
What governance failures led to Sri Lanka losing the hosting rights?
The ICC's action against Sri Lanka Cricket followed a prolonged dispute over the board's administration. According to the Daily Mirror, the governing body communicated to Transformation Committee Secretary Prakash Schaffter around July 2026 that a failure to conduct elections within the required period would result in the loss of hosting rights. Those elections were not held in time.
Political interference and the lack of a democratically elected board were identified as the central governance failures. The Transformation Committee has since finalised a draft constitution and submitted it to the Sports Minister, though the document must still complete a parliamentary legal process before it takes effect. This episode is not the first time Sri Lanka has faced consequences of this nature. In 2023, the ICC relocated the 2024 Men's Under-19 World Cup away from Sri Lanka, awarding it to South Africa after SLC was suspended over government interference in cricket administration.
ICC Chairman Jay Shah addressed the broader significance of the tournament in an official ICC release.
"The ICC Women's Champions Trophy 2027 marks an exciting new chapter for women's cricket. As the inaugural edition of the tournament, it will bring together the best teams in the world in an intense, high-quality competition, while creating even greater incentive for teams to continue rising through the rankings and competing for a place on the global stage. With a marquee ICC women's event now taking place every year, we have a significant opportunity to build greater momentum, provide more consistency and create a stronger rhythm for the women's game, its players and its fans around the world," said Shah as quoted by ICC.
Which teams will compete and what format will the tournament follow?
Six nations will contest the inaugural edition, Australia, England, India, New Zealand, South Africa and Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka's inclusion as a competing team means the country will participate in the very tournament whose hosting rights it has forfeited.
The competition will use a round-robin league format in which all six sides face one another during the group stage. The two teams with the best records at the end of that phase will meet in the final, scheduled for February 28, 2027. Both Mumbai and Vadodara will share match duties across the tournament.
