How to buy 2026 World Snooker Championship tickets as deadline nears | Other | Sport
The World Snooker Tour (WST) have announced ticket details for the 2026 World Championship, including how to purchase seats at the Crucible and when they will become available. The hottest show in Sheffield is currently in town, with the biggest names in snooker vying to take Kyren Wilson’s title.
However, there are growing concerns about limited opportunities for fans to watch snooker’s blue-ribbon event in the UK. An influx of Saudi Arabian money in the sport has prompted calls for the World Championship to be moved out of Sheffield and instead be hosted overseas. Saudi and China are the leading candidates, with a host of big-money events already taking place in those countries. The Crucible has a contract to host the World Championship until 2027 and its future status as the venue is up in the air.
With that in mind, the WST has confirmed how supporters can purchase tickets to next year’s tournament.
They will be released in three-tiered windows, as the WST confirmed that seats in the Steel City are in higher demand “than ever before.”
Those who subscribe to WST PLAY, the tour’s live streaming platform, have the first chance to book their place at the Crucible. Anyone who set up an annual subscription (yearly, not monthly) before the 5pm deadline on Monday, April 28, can book tickets for the 2025 World Championship on Friday, May 2, at 11am and Saturday, May 3, at 4pm.
The next window opens up a few hours later and is for general priority subscribers. Those who have opted into Cue News or who have registered specifically for that window can buy tickets from 9am to 4pm on Sunday, May 4. The deadline to sign up is at 5pm on Friday, May 4.
The third wave of tickets is general sale, which begins at 9am on Monday, May 5. All remaining tickets from the first two windows will be available for purchase, though several sessions are expected to be sold out before this time.
Tickets can be purchased via the WST website.
The iconic Crucible Theatre has been home to the World Championship since 1977, but has a much smaller capacity than headline events from rival sports. It seats just 980 and Barry Hearn claims that he could sell 4,00 tickets for each session.
“We want to stay but the financials have to be taken into consideration,” Hearn told BBC 5 Live. “The facilities where the Crucible is are no longer fit for purpose, that’s the key issue.
The Matchroom Sport chief’s son, Eddie Hearn, claims that snooker is “leaving a huge amount of money on the table” amid growing pressure from players to leave the iconic venue behind.
There is a chance that just two more World Championships are held in Sheffield after 2025 and tickets will be in big demand.
