Jay Shah credits years of groundwork as Women’s World Cup 2025 proves massive success: ‘Passionate about women's cricket‘

International Cricket Council (ICC) president Jay Shah paid tribute to all those who made the hugely successful Women’s World Cup 2025 possible as India emerged as the new champions. India won the tournament for the first time by beating South Africa in front of a sold-out crowd of 45,000 at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on Sunday.

The World Cup 2025 also set a new record for league stage attendance at any ICC women’s event, with 25,965 fans attending India’s match against Bangladesh at the DY Patil.

India earned a record prize money of $4.48 million (around Rs 40 crore) , significantly higher than what the Australian men’s cricket team got ($1.32 million) for winning the 2023 World Cup. The total prize money pool for the tournament was a record $13.88 million (about Rs 116 crore). The 2022 World Cup had a prize pool of $3.5 million.

Jay Shah reacts to successful 2025 Women’s World Cup

The significant increase in the prize money for an ICC women’s event has been credited to Jay Shah’s elevation to the top post in the global body. The Women’s Premier League (WPL), which has been a cornerstone of India’s growing prowess in women’s cricket, was also launched under Shah’s guidance, who was the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) back then in 2023.

Also Read | How WPL, BCCI investment turned Indian women’s cricket from nearly-there to world champion

Reflecting on the successful World Cup, Shah called himself a fan of women’s cricket as he also thanked all the stakeholders.

“I’ve been passionate about women’s cricket for a long time, and the success of the latest @ICC Women’s @CricketWorldCup is a testament to so many who have been working openly and behind the scenes for years to see this growth and evolution materialize before our very eyes,” he wrote on social media.

The viewership numbers for the Women’s World Cup 2025 have not been revealed, but it’s expected that the broadcast stats will break all previous records.