‘If I was a gambling man’ - Barry Hearn predicts future location of World Championship amid Crucible revamp
The 2029 and potentially 2030 World Snooker Championship will be played outside of Sheffield while the Crucible is redeveloped
Barry Hearn has shared his thoughts on the future of the Snooker World Championship and where he feels the 2029 and potentially 2030 tournaments will be held.
It was announced in March, a month prior to this year’s Snooker World Championship, that the sport’s biggest tournament would be staying at the atmospheric Crucible venue until at least 2045.
However, linked to that is a deal stating that the theatre will be redeveloped, with 500 seats being added to take the overall capacity to 1,500.
While that £45m renovation happens, the tournament in 2029 and potentially 2030, will take place outside of the Crucible for the first time since 1976 when Ray Reardon triumphed at Middlesbrough Town Hall.
This has led to plenty of speculation as to where the World Championship will be played in the Crucible’s absence.
China, which already plays host to numerous ranking events, has been tipped as a potential location amid the rise in popularity of the sport in the country.
While in the past Saudi Arabia has also been mooted as a possible destination following the country’s significant investment in a wide range of sports including football, golf and boxing.
However, Matchroom promoter and founder Hearn says at this stage he’s confident that the World Championship will continue to take place in the United Kingdom.
“If I was a gambling man I would go odds-on it stays in the UK,” said Hearn, via BBC Sport.
The promoter, who has had a controlling stake in World Snooker since 2010, added: “But being the money man I am, if the right offer comes in I will have to consider it. Great Britain is the home of snooker, it is where we grew up as a sport, and I’m very loath to move it anywhere else.”
Hearn also discussed various other factors that he’d have to consider, including his relationship with the BBC, who broadcast the event to a huge audience each year.
He said: “I have a great relationship with the BBC and you don’t want to take it anywhere that has a different time zone. There are opportunities to take it elsewhere, but these opportunities come with downsides.
“As much as I love the Crucible, it’s getting a bit aged - it was becoming not fit for purpose and money needed to be spent. It’s a one or two-year gap, but everyone will put pressure on to make it just one year away. We have to really try to make it in just one year.”
The World Championship started on Saturday, April 18 with defending champion Zhao Xintong showing his snooker prowess with a victory over Liam Highfield.
He’s aiming to break the Crucible Curse by defending his status as champion after becoming a first-time winner last year.
Since the tournament moved to Sheffield, no first-time winner has won back-to-back World Championship titles.