 "India has defeated Pakistan in the final of WCL 2024. Image: Fancode")
The World Championship of Legends (WCL) organisers are facing immense criticism on social media as they were forced to cancel the India vs Pakistan match , scheduled for Sunday (20 July) at Edgbaston. Now, one of the major sponsors of the event, an Indian company, has distanced itself from the matches against Pakistan, stating that they don’t want to be a part of any games involving the Pakistan legends.
EaseMyTrip, a travel-tech company and the official sponsor of the WCL, has released a statement on X (formerly Twitter) stating that they had informed the organisers at the start of the 2025 tournament that they do not want to associate with Pakistan matches.
EaseMyTrip distances itself from matches vs Pakistan
“Despite entering into a 5-year sponsorship agreement with the World Championship of Legends (WCL) two years ago, our stance has always been clear—EaseMyTrip will not be associated with or participate in any WCL match involving Pakistan. We proudly continue to support the India Champions and stand firmly by our team,” the sponsor said on X.
“However, as a matter of principle, we do not support or promote any match that includes Pakistan. This position was communicated unambiguously to the WCL team from the beginning. EaseMyTrip supports Team India, but will not engage in any match featuring Pakistan. Let’s bring the cup home. Bharat First. Always,” the sponsor added.
Meanwhile, the WCL organisers have apologised for “hurting” the sentiments of Indian fans. They also regretted causing “discomfort” to Indian legends and “affecting” their sponsors.
“More than that, we unintentionally caused discomfort to our Indian Cricket Legends, who have brought so much glory to the country, and we ended up affecting the brands who supported us purely out of love for the game,” WCL said in a statement.
Meanwhile, a report has claimed that the match was cancelled after former Indian cricket greats, including Shikhar Dhawan, Irfan Pathan, Yusuf Pathan, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh pulled out from the contest against Pakistan. The legendary Indian cricketers were reportedly not happy that Shahid Afridi, a well-known critic of the Indian government, was part of the match .