Snooker World Championship 2025 Prize Money: How much the winner gets, format, how to watch on TV

Kyren Wilson is the reigning World Snooker Champion. | Getty Images

The 2025 Halo World Snooker Championship - the 49th consecutive year the event has been held at Sheffield’s Crucible Theatre - is just a few weeks away.

First held in 1927, it is the longest-running and most prestigious tournament in professional snooker, with a prize fund of £2,395,000, of which the winner will receive £500,000.

Last year saw Kyren Wilson defeat Jak Jones 18‍–‍14 in the final and Wilson will be back to defend his title.

Here’s everything you need to know about this year’s competition.

When is the World Snooker Championship 2025?

The World Snooker Championship takes place from April 19 to May 5.

How do players qualify for the World Championships?

The top 16 players from the snooker ‘Race to the Crucible’ world rankings qualify automatically. They are joined by another 16 players who win through the 128-strong qualification tournament.

Who is currently in the automatic qualification slots?

Here are the 16 players who will currently avoid having to qualify, in order:

1. Kyren Wilson
2. Judd Trump
3. Mark Selby
4. Ronnie O’Sullivan
5. Mark Williams
6. John Higgins
7. Luca Brecel
8. Mark Allen
9. Neil Robertson
10. Ding Junhui
11. Barry Hawkins
12. Zhang Anda
13. Si Jiahui
14. Xiao Guodong
15. Shaun Murphy
16. Jak Jones

Will Ronnie O’Sullivan be playing at the Snooker World Championship?

The Rocket has pulled out of a string of tournaments recently, which has had the knock-on effect of meaning that he’s not even qualified for others.

Luckily for him, the rankings for the World Championships use prize money over three consecutive seasons, so he will still automatically qualify. Whether he actually plays is very much up to him.

When does qualification for the Snooker World Championships take place?

The other 16 players will come through the qualification process. There will be four rounds of qualification taking place from April 7‑16 at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield.

What Scots are involved?

Of the Scotting players, only John Higgins looks like making it through to the competion without qualifying.

Stephen Maguire currently sits in 26th place so will have to qualify - somthing he successfully did last year, reaching the quarter-finals.

Can I watch the Snooker World Championships on television?

The BBC will once again be broadcasting live coverage across BBC1, BBC2, the Red Button and the iPlayer. There will also be highlights programmes every evening to catch up on the day’s action.

What is the format of the Snooker World Championships?

All first-round matches are the best of 19 frames (first to 10 frames) played over two session.

Second-round matches and the quarter-finals are the best of 25 frames (first to 13 frames), played over three sessions.

The semi-finals are the best of 33 frames (first to 17 frames) played over four sessions.

The final is the best of 35 frames (first to 18 frames) played over four sessions.

Who has won the most World Championships?

Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan jointly hold the record for the most world titles in the modern era, having won the tournament seven times each. Hendry is also the youngest ever winner, having been only 21 when he claimed his first title in 1990.

Ray Reardon and Steve Davis have each won six titles, while John Higgins and Mark Selby have won four, with John Spencer and Mark Williams having claimed three.

So, if Ronnie O’Sullivan another tournament he’ll pull ahead of Stephen Hendry for the record of most titles.

How many 147s have there been at the World Snooker Championship?

Prior to this year there had only ever been 14 maximum breaks in the history of the competition, with Ronnie O'Sullivan and Stephen Hendry recording three each.

The other players to have achieved the ultimate snooker feat are John Higgins, Ali Carter, Mark Williams, Jimmy White, Cliff Thorburn and Neil Robertson, Kyren Wilson and Mark Selby.

What’s the prize money?

A total of £2.395 million in money is up for grabs at the World Snooker Championship, with the winner handed a cheque for a hefty £500,000.

The runner-up gets a consolation cheque for £200,000, the semi-finalists £100,000, quarter-finalists £30,000, second round players £30,000, and even those who fail to win a match are handed £20,000.

In addition, there’s a bonus £40,000 up for grabs for a maximum 147 break, and a further £15,000 for the highest break in the tournament.

What trophy is presented at the World Snooker Championships?

The recognisable World Championship trophy dates back to 1926 when it was bought by pioneering player Joe David for just £19.

It’s made of silver, weighs 46.5 troy ounces, and is topped by the figure of a Greek shepherdess - not a snooker player, as some people presume.

Judd Trump is the bookies’ favourite, with odds of 7/2, followed by Ronnie O’Sullivan (7/1), Kyren Wilson (7/1), Mark Selby (8/1) and Neil Robertson (10/1).