SNOOKER supremo Barry Hearn admits the World Championships could soon have a new home.
The hallowed Crucible in Sheffield has been the home of the prestigious tournament for the last 47 years.
But the venue’s deal to host the competition expires in 2027 and potential news hosts, including Saudi Arabia, will likely soon express an interest in staging the event.
And Matchroom founder Hearn admits The Kingdom could soon be the tournament’s new home.
When asked if Saudi could land the competition, the 76-year-old told talkSPORT. “Yes. Of course.
“I mean, look, it’s very straightforward. Saudi, we do events in Saudi now, and they’re getting bigger.
“But they’re still not the crowd and not the atmosphere. I understand all that.”
Hearn admits it’d make financial sense for snooker‘s biggest competition, just like the biggest fights in boxing, to be held in Saudi.
He continued: “Instead of me selling the Crucible out and making £3.5million, £3.7m on gate, I get a £20m site fee from Saudi.
“If I get £20m from [the] site fee, I can double, treble the prize money.
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BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year.
The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport.
The first World Championships ran from 1927 – with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport.
Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period.
Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan share the record for the most titles in the modern era, with seven each.
Most World Titles (modern era)
“All the players say, ‘Oh, we love the Crucible, we don’t want to leave.’
“I’d say, ‘I’ll tell you what I’m going to do, I’ll treble the prize money.’
“We’re gone, straight away. We’re led by money, let’s not kid ourselves.”
A potential switch to Saudi has been hailed by snooker icon Ronnie O’Sullivan.
In an exclusive interview with SunSport, ‘The Rocket’ said: “I don’t like the Crucible.
“I don’t think you can get in and out of it. I think definitely it’s a wise decision to take it away from Sheffield.
“Still have a tournament there. Why not? But just not the world championship over 17 days.
“It’s a massive circus and you need a massive space to accommodate it.
“I think Saudi Arabia would be great. They’ve got the resources and would do it great.”
