Cricket Canada has suffered a huge setback after the International Cricket Council (ICC) suspended its funding for six months over governance-related concerns. The development comes at a time when Canadian cricket has already been under heavy scrutiny because of multiple administrative and integrity-related controversies over the last year.
As first reported by ESPNcricinfo, the ICC informed Cricket Canada earlier this week about the funding freeze. While the suspension is not expected to affect cricket operations or high-performance programmes immediately, it could severely impact the board financially given its heavy dependence on ICC distributions.
According to Cricket Canada’s financial statements for the year ending 2024, nearly 63% of its total revenue came directly from ICC funding. The board earned around CAD$3.6 million from the ICC out of an overall revenue of CAD$5.7 million.
Corruption probes put Cricket Canada under pressure
The exact reasons behind the ICC’s decision have not been officially disclosed yet. However, Canadian investigative programme The Fifth Estate recently reported alleged “breaches of ICC policies”, including concerns related to governance standards and financial oversight inside Cricket Canada.
The board has been surrounded by controversy in recent months. Canada’s T20 World Cup fixture against New Zealand is currently under investigation by the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU). The investigation follows a 43-minute documentary aired by CBC, which lays out a series of allegations around Cricket Canada’s administration.
At the same time, another separate ACU investigation is also ongoing following the leak of a phone conversation involving former Canada coach Khurram Chohan. In that recording, Chohan allegedly claimed that former senior board officials pressured him to pick certain players for the national team. The audio also reportedly contained allegations linked to attempts at match-fixing corruption.
Earlier this year, ICC interim anti-corruption chief Andrew Ephgrave had said: “Governance matters in relation to ICC Members are considered by the ICC, where they fall under its jurisdiction, in accordance with the ICC’s standard constitutional processes.“
Administrative chaos continues
Cricket Canada’s off-field troubles have been a headache for the ICC. The organisation also faced embarrassment over the appointment and later removal of former CEO Salman Khan.
Last month, Arvinder Khosa replaced Amjad Bajwa as interim president before formally being elected as Cricket Canada’s new president during the Annual General Meeting held on May 9 and 10. Interestingly, the ICC funding suspension arrived immediately after Cricket Canada announced a “governance transformation initiative” and elected a new nine-member board.
Responding to the controversy, Cricket Canada media manager Jimmy Sharma told The Fifth Estate: “The current Board has inherited these issues and is fully committed to resolving all governance, compliance, and financial control deficiencies.” The ICC has not issued an official public statement yet, while Cricket Canada are also yet to release a detailed response regarding the suspension.
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