Snooker legends speak out on World Championship’s Crucible future

As the statement implicit the aboriginal of the World Snooker Championship continues, a drawstring of the sport’s bigget stars person called for the lawsuit to enactment astatine the Crucible successful Sheffield.

The sport’s top tourney has been held successful the aforesaid venue successful the South Yorkshire metropolis since 1977, with the theatre becoming synonymous with snooker’s biggest show.

However, the existent declaration to support the World Championship astatine the Crucible expires successful 2027 and determination has been much than a proposition that the lawsuit could determination elsewhere.

The Crucible is an iconic venue but with little than 1,000 seats and with outdated facilities backstage and erstwhile it comes to hospitality, determination person been calls for a caller location to beryllium found.

Matchroom Sport president Barry Hearn publically asked Sheffield City Council to physique a overmuch bigger arena oregon the World Championship would beryllium leaving to prosecute greater riches elsewhere.

Talks are ongoing betwixt World Snooker Tour and decision-makers successful Sheffield arsenic to however the metropolis tin champion elevate the tourney without gathering a caller arena, which is simply a fanciful suggestion.

While a greater capableness and much prize wealth could beryllium recovered elsewhere, immoderate of snooker’s top players bash present privation to spell chasing those things and consciousness that the past and presumption of the Crucible are worthy holding onto.

Four-time satellite champion John Higgins told Eurosport: ‘Stay successful Sheffield. I conscionable emotion the Crucible. I conscionable deliberation if we ever determination from the Crucible it would beryllium thing similar maine not having my day anymore. I’ve been determination for truthful long.

‘I would emotion it to say, but I conscionable deliberation it’s inevitable it’s going to move.’

Another four-time victor astatine the Crucible, Mark Selby, added: ‘Sheffield, for me, enactment astatine the Crucible.

‘It’s the history, I conscionable deliberation it’s not the biggest venue we play successful but it’s the astir compact and the ambiance is similar thing I’ve ever experienced successful the one-table set-up.’

Three-time champ Mark Williams feels that if different portion of the satellite wants a huge-money, tremendous lawsuit past that is fine, but the World Championship should stay wherever it is.

‘Stay successful Sheffield,’ said the Welshman. ‘Why not conscionable person a tourney retired determination £1m the winner? You don’t person to telephone it the World Championships, telephone it the Saudi Masters, the Saudi World Cup, immoderate you privation to telephone it. They tin person their ain tourney with £1m the winner, £2m the winner, immoderate they want, but conscionable permission the Crucible for the World Championships.

‘The Crucible hasn’t got to beryllium the highest money. The World Championship is the World Championship, if there’s different tourney implicit determination for £1m the victor past great.

‘I’m not a large person of the venue, I ne'er person been but everything there, each the history. I’ve changed my mind, years agone I thought it should permission but I’ve changed my mind.

‘It’s small, precise cramped backstage but I deliberation that’s what makes the ambiance similar it is and you’ll ne'er make that anyplace else.’

2005 satellite champion Shaun Murphy agrees, saying: ‘Hand connected heart, the Crucible was wherever I fell successful emotion with snooker. When radical instrumentality up snooker and crook pro and person dreams they imagination of playing astatine the Crucible. I would whole-heartedly privation the tourney to enactment astatine the Crucible.’

It is not a unanimous decision, though, with Mark Allen saying helium would similar the lawsuit to stay, but if the winner’s prize were to quadruple from its existent £500,000 past helium would alteration his mind.

‘There’s rumours that the World Championship could beryllium £2m the winner. If that’s the lawsuit past determination distant from Sheffield,’ said the Pistol. ‘If it stays astatine Sheffield and it’s £1m the winner, I’d accidental support it.’

World fig 1 Judd Trump is successful favour of the thought to circuit the World Championship circular a fig of venues, returning to its iconic location each fewer years.

‘I’d similar to spot it determination but not each year,’ said Trump. ‘I’d similar to spot it determination astir and spot different antithetic countries and places get the accidental to acquisition it arsenic well.’

There are besides immoderate players firmly successful the ‘leave’ camp, including erstwhile Crucible finalist Ali Carter who feels the crippled has to determination successful bid to grow.

‘Let’s bash thing else. Let’s turn it,’ said the Captain. ‘How tin our biggest tourney beryllium successful our smallest venue? If you support doing the aforesaid aged happening it conscionable doesn’t grow.’

2023 satellite champion Luca Brecel was truthful impressed by the caller Saudi Arabia Masters successful Riyadh that helium fancies a determination there.

‘Saudi Arabia was truthful good, I would accidental Saudi Arabia,’ said the Bullet. ‘The players’ lounge was amazing, the tables were amazing.’

The statement volition rumble connected for a portion yet and volition truly footwear backmost into cogwheel erstwhile the adjacent variation of the World Championship gets underway successful Sheffield connected 19 April.

For much stories similar this, check our athletics page.

Follow Metro Sport for the latest quality connected Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

MORE : Louis Heathcote connected beating Mark Selby, captious Northern Ireland tally and pants problems

MORE : How 2 players won matches with the aforesaid cue astatine the Northern Ireland Open

MORE : World Snooker Tour denote different prize wealth boost aft immense Grand Prix expansion