The month of January 2025 will see 23 nations visiting India to participate in the first-ever Kho Kho World Cup
India witnessed a series of highs and lows in the field of sports in 2024. From India winning the ICC T20I World Cup to multiple Olympic medals and Gukesh Dommaraju becoming the World Chess Champion, India had a brilliant sporting year. However, the nation also had multiple heartbreaks, especially in the Olympic Games, witnessing several near misses, Neeraj settling for silver and Vinesh Phogat's disqualification. Not to forget, not a single international win for Indian football, and so on.
However, we have left 2024, and now the nation's focus is on 2025. This year, India is set to host as many as four major World Cups across various sports. Check them out in the following paragraphs.
The year begins with some Kho Kho action as India is set to host the first-ever Kho Kho World Cup from January 13 onward. A total of 21 men's teams and 20 female teams will participate in the inaugural edition of the World Cup, which will be hosted in the nation's capital, Delhi, at the IGI stadium. The first game of the tournament will be between India and PAK on January 13.
Dates are yet to be confirmed, but India will play host to the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup, which is likely to be played from August till the end of September across multiple Indian cities. So far, 12 editions have been played, out of which seven editions have been won by Australia, followed by England's four and New Zealand's one. India has played two finals but is yet to lift the trophy. While India hopes to win this year on home soil, the majority of cricket fans hope to see a new winner.
Considered the national sport of India, the nation is set to host the junior version of the Men's FIH Hockey World Cup. India has two titles, but the last one was lifted by the boys in 2016. Therefore, India will hope to get the third one in its hands in front of the home crowd. On the other hand, Germany has seven titles and hopes to keep its momentum. The last World Cup held in 2023 was also won by Germany. While the official dates have not been confirmed, the tournament is expected to be played in December 2025.
Scheduled to be played between December 9 and 14, 2025, in Chennai, the Squash World Cup will feature a host of squash stars from different corners of the world. Last year, Egypt thrashed Malaysia in front of a crowd in Chennai's Express Avenue Mall, whereas India finished with the third ranking. Similar to other teams, India also hopes to win in front of the home spectators.
Apart from World Cups, other major tournaments that India is set to host this year are the Davis Cup World Group I playoffs, ATP Challenger tournaments, FIH Pro League, Men's Asia Cup, ISSF Junior World Cup, the World Boxing Cup Final, a World Athletics Continental Tour, World Para Athletics Championships, BWF World Junior Championships, and a few more.
