The 2026 World Snooker Championship runs from April 18 to May 4 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, broadcast live on the BBC. Top contenders include Zhao Xintong, Ronnie O'Sullivan, and Judd Trump.
Key points
2026 World Snooker Championship dates: April 18 to May 4
Location: Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
Top seed: Zhao Xintong, first Chinese champion
Ronnie O'Sullivan aims for record eighth title
Four debutants and 11 Chinese players in the tournament
The 2026 World Snooker Championship takes place at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield from 18 April to 4 May - and you can watch every shot of the tournament live on the BBC.
Top seed Zhao Xintong, who became the first champion from China by beating Mark Williams in last year's final, is the favourite this year.
Ronnie O'Sullivan hopes to win a record eighth world title at the age of 50 - 25 years after claiming his first - to finally move clear of Stephen Hendry as the championship's most successful player.
World number one Judd Trump aims to lift the trophy for the second time, while other contenders include former champions Kyren Wilson, Mark Selby, John Higgins, Mark Williams and Shaun Murphy.
There are four debutants including England's Stan Moody, 19, and Liam Pullen, 20, and a record 11 Chinese players in the field of 32.
This year is the 50th championship to be held at the Crucible since the tournament moved to Sheffield in 1977.
The two-day final starts on 3 May, with the winner taking home £500,000.
He starts his campaign against debutant He Guoqiang on Tuesday afternoon, with the best-of-19 match finishing the following day.
Should O'Sullivan win and other matches go according to seedings, he would face John Higgins in a second-round match starting at 19:00 BST on Saturday, 25 April, Neil Robertson in the quarter-finals and reigning champion Zhao in the semi-finals.
The Rocket lost 17-7 with a session to spare to Zhao in the semi-finals last year.
Moody has reached two ranking event quarter-finals this season and is ranked 40th in the world [Getty Images]
Moody and Liam Pullen both made their debuts after coming through the qualifying tournament at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield.
Moody gave 2024 champion Wilson a tough test before falling to a 10-7 defeat, while Pullen plays 13th seed Chris Wakelin.
China's He is another debutant, while Antoni Kowalski, 22, became the first player from Poland to play at the Crucible.
Two-time beaten finalists Matthew Stevens and Ali Carter both claimed one of the 16 qualifying places, while 2024 finalist Jak Jones, 2019 semi-finalist Gary Wilson and Iran's Hossein Vafaei also made it through.
However, Luca Brecel was among the players who failed to make the cut.
The qualifiers will take hope from the success of Zhao last year, who won four qualifying matches to reach the Crucible then went on to become only the third qualifier to win the world title.
Zhao was also one of six qualifiers to beat seeded players in 2025's opening round.
With comprehensive television coverage across BBC One, BBC Two and BBC Four, and uninterrupted streaming on BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app, audiences won't miss a moment from the first break to the final frame.
Legends of the game Hendry, Steve Davis, John Parrott, Ken Doherty and Dennis Taylor will offer their expert analysis throughout the tournament.
The BBC Sport website and app will provide daily coverage via live streams and live text pages, including updates from our reporters at the Crucible.
BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds will have regular updates throughout the Championship.
BBC Sport social media channels will deliver behind-the-scenes content as well as highlight clips from the tournament and player interviews.
First round (best of 19 frames)
All times BST and subject to late changes, while session times could finish earlier or later than listed below. *denotes final session
Tuesday, 21 April
10:00
Chris Wakelin (13) v Liam Pullen
Judd Trump (2) v Gary Wilson
14:30
Ronnie O'Sullivan (12) v He Guoqiang
Wu Yize (10) 8-1 Lei Peifan *
19:00
Shaun Murphy (8) v Fan Zhengyi *
Judd Trump (2) v Gary Wilson *
Live coverage
10:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
10:00-12:15 - BBC Two
10:00-14:00 - Red Button
14:15-18:00 - BBC Two & Red Button
19:00-22:00 - BBC Four & Red Button
Highlights
00:00-02:00 - World Championship Extra on BBC Two
Wednesday, 22 April
10:00
Chris Wakelin (13) v Liam Pullen *
Mark Selby (7) v Jak Jones
14:30
Ronnie O'Sullivan (12) v He Guoqiang *
Si Jiahui (15) v Hossein Vafaei
19:00
Neil Robertson (4) v Pang Junxu
Mark Selby (7) v Jak Jones *
Live coverage
10:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
10:00-11:15 - BBC Two
10:00-14:00 - Red Button
14:15-18:00 - BBC Two & Red Button
19:00-22:00 - BBC Four & Red Button
Highlights
00:00-02:00 - World Championship Extra on BBC Two
Thursday, 23 April
13:00
Si Jiahui (15) v Hossein Vafaei *
19:00
Neil Robertson (4) v Pang Junxu *
Live coverage
13:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
13:00-17:00 - BBC Two & Red Button
Try our 2025 quiz
Second round (best of 25 frames)
Thursday, 23 April
13:00
Xiao Guodong (9) v Shaun Murphy/Fan Zhengyi
19:00
Kyren Wilson v Mark Allen
Live coverage
13:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
13:00-17:00 - BBC Two & Red Button
19:00-22:00 - BBC Four & Red Button
Highlights
00:00-02:00 - World Championship Extra on BBC Two
Friday, 24 April
10:00
Xiao Guodong (9) v Shaun Murphy (8)/Fan Zhengyi
Barry Hawkins (11) v Mark Williams (6)
14:30
Zhao Xintong (1) v Ding Junhui (16)
Kyren Wilson (3) v Mark Allen (14)
19:00
Xiao Guodong (9) v Shaun Murphy (8)/Fan Zhengyi *
Barry Hawkins (11) v Mark Williams (6)
Live coverage
10:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
10:00-12:00 - BBC Two
10:00-14:00 - Red Button
14:15-18:00 - BBC Two & Red Button
19:00-22:00 - BBC Four & Red Button
Highlights
00:00-02:00 - World Championship Extra on BBC Two
Saturday, 25 April
10:00
Chris Wakelin (13)/Liam Pullen v Neil Robertson (4)/Pang Junxu
Kyren Wilson (3) v Mark Allen (14) *
14:30
Zhao Xintong (1) v Ding Junhui (16)
Si Jiahui (15)/Hossein Vafaei v Judd Trump (2)/Gary Wilson
19:00
John Higgins (5)/Ali Carter v Ronnie O'Sullivan (12)/He Guoqiang
Barry Hawkins (11) v Mark Williams (6) *
Live coverage
10:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
10:00-12:05 - BBC Two
10:00-14:00 - Red Button
14:00-16:30 - BBC One
16:30-17:15 - BBC Two
19:00-22:00 - BBC Four & Red Button
Highlights
00:10-03:00 - World Championship Extra on BBC Two
Sunday, 26 April
10:00
Zhao Xintong (1) v Ding Junhui (16)
Mark Selby (7)/Jak Jones v Wu Yize (10)/Lei Peifan
14:30
Chris Wakelin (13)/Liam Pullen v Neil Robertson (4)/Pang Junxu
Si Jiahui (15)/Hossein Vafaei v Judd Trump (2)/Gary Wilson
19:00
John Higgins (5) v Ronnie O'Sullivan (12)/He Guoqiang
Mark Selby (7)/Jak Jones v Wu Yize (10)/Lei Peifan
Live coverage
10:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
10:00-12:30 - BBC Two
10:00-14:00 - Red Button
15:00-18:00 - BBC Two
16:35-18:00 - Red Button
19:00-22:00 - BBC Four & Red Button
Highlights
23:55-01:55 - World Championship Extra on BBC Two
Monday, 27 April
13:00
John Higgins (5) v Ronnie O'Sullivan (12)/He Guoqiang *
Mark Selby (7)/Jak Jones v Wu Yize (10)/Lei Peifan *
19:00
Chris Wakelin (13)/Liam Pullen v Neil Robertson (4)/Pang Junxu *
Si Jiahui (15)/Hossein Vafaei v Judd Trump (2)/Gary Wilson *
Live coverage
13:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
15:00-17:00 - BBC Two & Red Button
19:00-22:00 - BBC Four & Red Button
Highlights
00:00-02:00 - World Championship Extra on BBC Two
Quarter-finals (best of 25 frames)
Tuesday, 28 April
Live coverage
10:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
10:00-12:15 - BBC Two
10:00-14:00 - Red Button
14:15-18:00 - BBC Two & Red Button
19:00-22:00 - BBC Two & Red Button
Highlights
00:00-02:00 - World Championship Extra on BBC Two
Wednesday, 29 April
Live coverage
10:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
10:00-11:15 - BBC Two
10:00-14:00 - Red Button
14:15-18:00 - BBC Two & Red Button
19:00-22:00 - BBC Two & Red Button
Highlights
00:00-02:00 - World Championship Extra on BBC Two
Semi-finals (best of 33 frames)
Thursday, 30 April
Live coverage
13:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
13:00-16:00 - BBC Two
19:00-22:00 - BBC Two
Highlights
00:00-02:00 - World Championship Extra on BBC Two
Friday, 1 May
Live coverage
10:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
10:00-12:00 - BBC Two
14:15-18:00 - BBC Two
19:00-22:00 - BBC Two
Saturday, 2 May
Live coverage
10:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
10:00-12:30 - BBC Two
14:00-16:30 - BBC One
16:30-17:30 - BBC Two
19:00-22:00 - BBC Two
Final (best of 35 frames)
Sunday, 3 May
Live coverage
13:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
13:00-16:00 - BBC Two
19:00-22:00 - BBC Two
Monday, 4 May
13:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app
13:00-16:00 - BBC Two
19:00-22:00 - BBC Two
Results
First round
Zhao Xintong (1) 10-7 Liam Highfield
Mark Allen (14) 10-6 Zhang Anda
Barry Hawkins (11) 10-4 Matthew Stevens
Mark Williams (6) 10-4 Antoni Kowalsk
Xiao Guodong (9) 10-6 Zhou Yuelong
Ding Junhui (16) 10-5 David Gilbert
John Higgins(5) 10-7 Ali Carter
Kyren Wilson (3) 10-7 Stan Moody
How much is the Crucible prize money?
The winner receives £500,000 and there was a total prize fund of almost £2.4m.
Northern Ireland's Mark Allen made a 147 break in the 13th frame of his second-round match against Chris Wakelin.
He became only the 11th player to make a 147 at the Crucible. The maximum was the 15th at the venue in the tournament's history and the first since Selby's clearance in the 2023 final.
Allen, who was 10-2 behind in the match at the time, went on to lose 13-6 to qualifier Wakelin.
