• [Daily Mirror Icon]
• Sport
• Other Sports
• Snooker World Championship

World Championship prize money to be increased as snooker chiefs release statement

The World Snooker Tour have confirmed that the prize fund for the 2027 World Championship will rise

[Stan Moody of England plays a shot against Kyren Wilson of England during day three of the Halo World Snooker Championship at The Crucible Theatre on April 20, 2026 in Sheffield, England. ]

View 2 Images

The prize money will increase next year at the World Snooker Championship(Image: Sam Bloxham/Getty Images)

The World Snooker Tour have announced that the prize fund for next year's World Championship will rise to 3million. The UK Championship will also receive a 1.5m uplift.

The opening round of the World Snooker Championship is currently taking place at the Crucible. Defending champion Zhao Xintong overcame a challenging first session against Liam Highfield to progress, with Mark Allen and John Higgins also going through.

Kyren Wilson delivered a remarkable fightback from 7-3 behind to prevent giving Stan Moody a surprise win on his debut. The 2024 champion secured a 10-7 triumph against the teenage prodigy and faced criticism for his excessive celebrations.

From next year, competitors will be playing for a bigger prize fund in Sheffield following approval of a 25 per cent rise. The overall pool has been increased to 3m, up from 2.4m.

JOIN US ON FACEBOOK! All the best sports news and much more on our dedicated Facebook page

The victor will receive 625,000, up from 500k. The UK Championship will also benefit from a substantial financial boost when it takes place in York later in November.

Competitors will battle for their portion of 1.5m, up from 1.2m. The winner will claim 312,500, an improvement on last year's figure of 250k that Mark Selby secured.

The WST confirmed that comparable financial increases will be implemented for each stage of both competitions. Complete details of the prize money distributions will be revealed in due course.

[Gary Wilson of England prepares to play a shot against Judd Trump of England during day four of the Halo World Snooker Championship at The Crucible Theatre on April 21, 2026 in Sheffield, England. ]

View 2 Images

The World Snooker Championship is currently underway(Image: Sam Bloxham/Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Judd Trump takes on Gary Wilson and Chris Wakelin meets Liam Pullen in the World Championship this morning. Ronnie O'Sullivan returns to the Crucible in the 2.30pm session as he faces He Guoqiang in his quest to win his eighth World Championship crown.

Shaun Murphy will finish his final session against Fan Zhengyi, with the Englishman holding a 5-4 advantage ahead of their 7pm encounter.

On Wednesday, Wakelin and Pullen wrap up their match with Mark Selby going head-to-head against Jak Jones. Si Jiahui meets Hossein Vafaei in the afternoon and Neil Robertson plays Pang Junxu in the evening session.

[Daily Mirror Icon]

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Choose Daily Mirror as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.