World Snooker Championship offer as £45m deal to force Crucible change | Other | Sport
Venues in London are reportedly read to throw their hat in the ring to host the World Snooker Championship in 2029 while the Crucible is redeveloped. The future of the tournament in Sheffield was in doubt before a new deal was agreed to keep the sport’s biggest event in the city.
It means the World Snooker Championship’s will stay at the historic arena until 2024, with the option of another year. However, the Crucible is set to undergo a £45million redevelopment, which will see an additional 500 seats added to the venue, with that work planned for 2029 and possibly 2030.
Snooker chiefs have not yet commented on where the tournament will be played during that redevelopment period, with several locations being touted. The Sun claims World Snooker Tour and host broadcaster BBC wants to keep the event in the UK.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan reportedly feels London has plenty of venues capable of hosting the event, given the wide array of fenues and hotel space.
Alexandra Palace has been suggested as a possible venue, given it alread hosts The Masters every January, attracting crowds of over 2,000.
The ExCeL and Olympia have also been suggested as possible locations, but they would need to be booked out for 17 days while the tournament takes place. but it would need to be blocked out for more than 17 days.
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London told The Sun: “London is renowned for hosting the biggest international sporting events from around the globe.
“The Mayor remains determined to bring even more sports from around the world to the capital. And if Sheffield is unable to host while the Crucible Theatre is being refurbished, we would be open to any discussions on staging the World Snooker Championship.”
Those comments follow on from Barry Hearn hinting the tournament would remain in the UK, despite Saudi Arabia being mentioned as a possible venue. Speaking to BBC Sport, Hearn, who has held a controlling stake in World Snooker since 2010, said: “If I was a gambling man I would go odds-on it stays in the UK.
“But being the money man I am, if the right offer comes in I will have to consider it. Great Britain is the home of snooker, it is where we grew up as a sport, and I’m very loath to move it anywhere else.”
