Champions Trophy 2025: A look at the past editions and winners of 'Mini World Cup' ahead of upcoming tournament

The start of the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy is less than a week away, with Karachi hosting the opener between hosts Pakistan and New Zealand on 19 February . The Champions Trophy, also known as the “Mini World Cup”, is returning after an eight-year absence. Pakistan are the defending champions, having beaten India in the final of the 2017 edition at The Oval in London.

The Champions Trophy was earlier known as the ICC KnockOut Trophy when the competition was introduced in 1998. The KnockOut Trophy was introduced in a bid to raise funds for the game’s development in non-Test playing countries. The tournament was played in a knockout format as the name suggests, and there were two editions of this tournament – in 1998 and 2000. Nine teams participated in the first edition and that increased to 11 teams from the next edition in 2000.

The KnockOut Trophy was then revamped to the existing ICC Champions Trophy in 2002. Over the years, the number of teams in each edition of the tournament have varied, with the highest participation being in the 2004 edition of the tournament (12 teams). However, the tournament has struck to eight teams since the 2009 edition.

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The eight teams are divided into two groups of four, with the top two teams qualifying for the semi-finals followed by the final. India have won the tournament twice. The first was in 2002, when the final against Sri Lanka was washed out due to rain, resulting in the two neighbouring countries being declared joint-winners. In 2013, India won their second Champions Trophy title, beating England in the final.

Let’s now take a look at each edition and the winners and runners-up:

1998 ICC KnockOut Trophy

Winners: South Africa; Runners-up: West Indies

Nine teams participated in the inaugural edition of the KnockOut Trophy in 1998 that was held in Bangladesh. New Zealand took on Zimbabwe in a preliminary match and the Kiwis advanced to the tournament proper by beating the African outfit by five wickets. The Black Caps, led by Stephen Fleming, however, endured a quarter-final exit following a five-wicket loss to Sri Lanka.

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India, led by Mohammad Azharuddin, took on West Indies in the semi-finals. Fifties from Sourav Ganguly and Robin Singh took the Men in Blue to 242/6 after opting to bat first, but Shivnarine Chanderpaul (74) and Brian Lara (60 not out) made light work of the six-wicket chase. West Indies, however, went down to South Africa by four wickets in the final.

2000 ICC KnockOut Trophy

Winners: New Zealand; Runners-up: India

Eleven teams took part in this edition that took place in Kenya. Six of the lowest-ranked teams took part in a playoff round to decide which three teams would qualify for the tournament proper. India, Sri Lanka and England qualified for the quarter-finals from the playoffs.

India defeated Australia and South Africa to reach the final, where they faced New Zealand. The Kiwis, however, defeated India by four wickets, with Sourav Ganguly’s century being overshadowed by that of Chris Cairns.

2002 ICC Champions Trophy

Joint-winners: India and Sri Lanka

From 2002 onwards, the KnockOut Cup was revamped and came to be known as the ICC Champions Trophy. The format was different — twelve teams were divided into four “pools” of three. India were in Pool 2, along with England and Zimbabwe. The top team from each pool qualified for the semi-finals, for which India qualified after topping the pool with two wins (Eight points).

The Sourav Ganguly-led side faced South Africa in the semi-finals, beating the Proteas by 10 runs. India and Sri Lanka locked horns in the final. Sri Lanka won the toss and opted to bat first in the final in Colombo. Fifties from skipper Sanath Jayasuriya and Kumar Sangakkara led them to a total of 244/5. India were 14/0 after two overs when rain played spoilsport.

The match was then moved to a reserve day where the game started from scratch. Sri Lanka batted first and posted 222/7 on the board. India were 38/1 in their chase when rain played spoilsport once again, and the trophy was eventually shared.

2004 ICC Champions Trophy

Winners: West Indies; Runners-up: England

Once again, there were 12 teams in the 2004 Champions Trophy that was held in England. The United States made their first, and only appearance in the tournament. India were in Group C along with Pakistan and Kenya, but were knocked out in the group stage after winning just one match. Pakistan, having defeated both India and Kenya, qualified for the semi-finals with four points, but would be eliminated in the knockouts by West Indies.

England took on West Indies in the final of the 2004 edition. West Indies opted to field first and restricted England to 217. The Windies themselves were in trouble at 114/6 in the chase, but Shivnarine Chanderpaul (47), Ian Bradshaw (34*) and Courtney Browne (35*) played pivotal knocks to earn the Caribbean side a historic title win.

2006 ICC Champions Trophy

Winners: Australia; Runners-up: West Indies

The 2004 champions, West Indies, failed to defend their title in 2006 in India, but reached the final of the tournament. Ten teams took part in the tournament, with four teams competing in a qualifying round to join the other six teams in the main tournament. India, who were in Group A along with Australia, England and West Indies, failed to get past the group after finishing third.

West Indies elected to bat first in the final that was held at Mumbai’s Brabourne Stadium. The Kiwis were all out for 138 after Nathan Bracken took three wickets.

Australia’s chase, however, was shortened due to rain and needed just 116 runs to win from 35 overs in the Duckworth-Lewis method. Shane Watson scored an unbeaten 57 to guide the Aussies to an eight-wicket win.

2009 ICC Champions Trophy

Winners: Australia; Runners-up: New Zealand

The 2009 ICC Champions Trophy was held in South Africa. The tournament was pruned to eight teams who were divided into two groups of four. India were in Group A along with Australia, Pakistan and West Indies, but failed to get past the group after finishing third.

Australia met New Zealand in the final, and once again, Shane Watson (105 not out) did the star turn in their six-wicket win.

2013 ICC Champions Trophy

Winners: India; Runners-up: England

MS Dhoni-led Team India won the 2013 Champions Trophy that was held in England. India finished Group B with six points (three wins) and met Sri Lanka in the semi-finals, whom they defeated by eight wickets. India then took on England in the final, which was shortened to a 20-over contest because of rain.

India were restricted to 129/7 after being asked to bat first, but the bowlers led by Ravindra Jadeja (2/24), Ishant Sharma (2/36) and Ravichandran Ashwin (2/15) inspired India to a five-run win, restricting England to 124/8.

2017 ICC Champions Trophy

Winners: Pakistan; Runners-up: India

India fell short of title triumph in the 2017 edition of the Champions Trophy. India were led by Virat Kohli this time around, and qualified for the semi-finals after finishing first in their group that consisted of Pakistan, South Africa and Sri Lanka.

India defeated Bangladesh by nine wickets in the semi-finals after an unbeaten 123 from Rohit Sharma. India, however, fell in the final hurdle to Pakistan. Pakistan were asked to bat first and posted 338/4 on the board after a knock of 114 from Fakhar Zaman. India were restricted to 72/6 at one stage before being bundled out for 158. Hardik Pandya fought a lone battle as he scored 76 runs off 43 balls.