England will play Afghanistan in the Champions Trophy on Wednesday, 26 February in Pakistan.It is a fixture that has caused plenty of controversy in the build-up, with some saying Jos Buttler's side should boycott the match in response to the Taliban's actions in Afghanistan.

The call for a boycott was started by a group of British lawmakers last month, who called on England to skip the Champions Trophy group stage match against Afghanistan. The appeal has been backed by over 160 British politicians and South Africa's Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has confirmed that England's men's team will play their scheduled ICC Men's Champions Trophy 2025 fixture against Afghanistan.

England's Champions Trophy match against Afghanistan will go ahead, despite calls for a boycott. A cross-party letter, signed by nearly 200 UK politicians, was sent to the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) asking for England to refuse to play in response to the Taliban's human rights record.

The England Cricket Board announced in a statement on Thursday that the cricketing board has decided to go ahead with the Champions Trophy 2025 encounter against Afghanistan amidst calls for a boycott of the game.

The England and Wales Cricket Board faced calls to boycott the fixture in a show of solidarity with Afghanistans women, who are in exile due to a clampdown on female rights under the Taliban regime; w