Emirates Cricket Board declared regional winners in four ICC Development Awards categories for the year 2025

Dubai, 6 June 2026: The International Cricket Council (ICC) unveiled yesterday (Friday) 30 ICC Development Awards 2025 regional winners across six categories that will compete for the Global Awards in July, with a further six shortlisted for the ICC criiio Cricket Festivals. 

The Emirates Cricket Board have been declared regional winners in four of the ICC Development Awards – 2025. The awards include ICC Development Initiative of the Year, ICC Female Cricket Initiative of the Year, ICC Associate Member Men’s Team Performance of the Year and the ICC Associate Member Women’s Team Performance of the Year. ECB has also earned a place in the shortlist for the award for the most outstanding ICC criiio Cricket Festival delivered in 2025.  

As per the ICC media release, established in 2002, the ICC Development Awards both recognise and celebrate the hard work undertaken by ICC Members in emerging nations to grow the global game.

The Regional Winners will now be put forward as contenders to claim the Global Awards, determined by a specialist and independent panel of voters consisting of two-time ICC Men’s T20 World Cup-winner Samuel Badree, ex-Ireland international Kevin O’Brien and former Zimbabwe international Mary-Anne Musonda. 

The remainder of the 12-strong panel includes representatives from ICC partners, ICC Full Members, and the media, with the Global Winners set to be revealed on ICC channels in July.

Chief Operating Officer ECB Subhan Ahmad: “We are delighted to earn recognition through these prestigious awards. The awards are a testament to the hard work and dedication of our women and men’s players, support staff and officials. These awards announced by cricket’s governing body [ICC] will motivate us further in our endeavours for the growth of the game across the UAE. In recent years, we have succeeded in expanding the player pool for both women and men’s teams enabled through our hugely successful age-group programmes for both boys and girls all around the country.

“Our development initiatives are now delivering results for us as our teams continue to compete with stronger and more established teams resulting in our historic success against Bangladesh in last year’s men’s T20I series and the women’s teams outstanding performance in their maiden ODI series against Zimbabwe [September 2025].” 

ICC Development Awards regional winners/global nomination for the ECB:

ICC Development Initiative of the Year – acknowledges the outstanding development initiative delivered by an Associate Member, either through a physical participation programme or a digitally delivered game development initiative.

Asia Regional Winner – Emirates Cricket Board

• Successful delivery of the inaugural edition of the Girls U15 Academy League which included 10 teams from Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah. The league was played over a five-month period.

ICC Female Cricket Initiative of the Year - acknowledges the outstanding female cricket-focused initiative delivered by an Associate Member to promote the game, either through a physical participation programme or a digitally delivered game development initiative.

Asia Regional Winner – Emirates Cricket Board

• Successful delivery of the Get Into Cricket for Girls and Criiio Cup – 40 schools participated, 10 each from Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai and Sharjah.

ICC Associate Member Men’s Team Performance of the Year - acknowledges the outstanding men’s on-field performance of the year by an Associate Member team in an ICC event or bilateral cricket.

Asia Regional Winner – Emirates Cricket Board 

• UAE’s stunning 2-1 T20I series win over Bangladesh in May 2025, the series was played in Sharjah.

ICC Associate Member Women’s Team Performance of the Year – acknowledges the outstanding women’s on-field performance of the year by an Associate Member team in an ICC event or bilateral cricket.

Asia Regional Winner – Emirates Cricket Board 

• UAE Women’s National Team’s impressive win in their first-ever ODI - Zimbabwe. UAE went onto to square the four-match away series hosted by Zimbabwe 2-2. The series was played in September 2025.

ICC criiio Cricket Festivals with Rexona - acknowledges an outstanding festival delivered by an ICC Associate Member that was part of the ICC criiio Cricket Festival programme. 

• ECB is one amongst the six nominees.

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