The 2026 World Snooker Championship has arrived, with the 17-day marathon at the Crucible Theatre set to provide the usual array of sporting drama as the best players on the planet vie to lift the famous trophy.
Zhao Xintong heads to Sheffield as defending champion after making history as the first Chinese winner of the tournament 12 months ago and he is the bookies’ favourite to retain his crown, although he will have to break the legendary ‘Crucible Curse’ to do so – with no first-time winner having successfully defended the title.
Plenty of other contenders will fancy their chances of stopping Zhao, who opens up with a first-round clash against Liam Highfield, including Ronnie O’Sullivan, who has found some form in recent weeks and begins his quest for a record eighth world title against Crucible debutant He Guoqiang.
Four-time winners Mark Selby and John Higgins face former finalists Jak Jones and Ali Carter respectively in round one, while world No 1 Judd Trump has a tough opener against Gary Wilson, 2024 champion Kyren Wilson squares off against teenage wonderkid Stan Moody and a rejuvenated Neil Robertson takes on Pang Junxu.
Here’s everything you need to know:
How to watch the World Snooker Championship
Every session of every match at the 2026 World Snooker Championship will be live on the BBC, with BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Four, the BBC red button, BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website all utilised for coverage across the 17 days. The tournament is also broadcast on TNT Sports in the UK, with every session shown across their channels and subscribers can also use streaming service HBO Max to watch TNT Sports.
World Snooker Championship schedule in full
(All times BST)
*denotes final session
Saturday 18 April
First round
10am
Zhao Xintong (1) vs Liam Highfield
Mark Allen (14) vs Zhang Anda
2.30pm
Xiao Guodong (9) vs Zhou Yuelong
Mark Williams (6) vs Antoni Kowalski
7pm
Zhao Xintong (1) vs Liam Highfield*
Barry Hawkins (11) vs Matthew Stevens
Sunday 19 April
First round
10am
Ding Junhui (16) vs David Gilbert
Mark Allen (14) vs Zhang Anda*
2.30pm
John Higgins (5) vs Ali Carter
Barry Hawkins (11) vs Matthew Stevens*
7pm
Xiao Guodong (9) vs Zhou Yuelong*
Mark Williams (6) vs Antoni Kowalski*
Monday 20 April
First round
10am
Ding Junhui (16) vs David Gilbert*
Kyren Wilson (3) vs Stan Moody
2.30pm
John Higgins (5) vs Ali Carter*
Wu Yize (10) vs Lei Peifan
7pm
Shaun Murphy (8) vs Fan Zhengyi
Kyren Wilson (3) vs Stan Moody*
Tuesday 21 April
First round
10am
Chris Wakelin (13) vs Liam Pullen
Judd Trump (2) vs Gary Wilson
2.30pm
Ronnie O’Sullivan (12) vs He Guoqiang
Wu Yize (10) vs Lei Peifan*
7pm
Shaun Murphy (8) vs Fan Zhengyi*
Judd Trump (2) vs Gary Wilson*
Wednesday 22 April
First round
10am
Chris Wakelin (13) vs Liam Pullen*
Mark Selby (7) vs Jak Jones
2.30pm
Ronnie O’Sullivan (12) vs He Guoqiang*
Si Jiahui (15) vs Hossein Vafaei
7pm
Neil Robertson (4) vs Pang Junxu
Mark Selby (7) vs Jak Jones*
Thursday 23 April
First round
1pm
Si Jiahui (15) vs Hossein Vafaei*
7pm
Neil Robertson (4) vs Pang Junxu*
Second round
1pm
Xiao Guodong/Zhou Yuelong vs Shaun Murphy/Fan Zhengyi
7pm
Kyren Wilson/Stan Moody vs Mark Allen/Zhang Anda
Friday 24 April
Second round
10am
Xiao Guodong/Zhou Yuelong vs Shaun Murphy/Fan Zhengyi
Barry Hawkins/Matthew Stevens vs Mark Williams/Antoni Kowalski
2.30pm
Zhao Xintong/Liam Highfield vs Ding Junhui/David Gilbert
Kyren Wilson/Stan Moody v Mark Allen/Zhang Anda
7pm
Xiao Guodong/Zhou Yuelong vs Shaun Murphy/Fan Zhengyi*
Barry Hawkins/Matthew Stevens vs Mark Williams/Antoni Kowalski
Saturday 25 April
Second round
10am
Chris Wakelin/Liam Pullen vs Neil Robertson/Pang Junxu
Kyren Wilson/Stan Moody v Mark Allen/Zhang Anda*
2.30pm
Zhao Xintong/Liam Highfield vs Ding Junhui/David Gilbert
Si Jiahui/Hossein Vafaei vs Judd Trump/Gary Wilson
7pm
John Higgins/Ali Carter vs Ronnie O’Sullivan/He Guoqiang
Barry Hawkins/Matthew Stevens vs Mark Williams/Antoni Kowalski*
Sunday 26 April
Second round
10am
Zhao Xintong/Liam Highfield vs Ding Junhui/David Gilbert*
Mark Selby /Jak Jones vs Wu Yize/Lei Peifan
2.30pm
Chris Wakelin/Liam Pullen vs Neil Robertson/Pang Junxu
Si Jiahui/Hossein Vafaei vs Judd Trump/Gary Wilson
7pm
John Higgins/Ali Carter vs Ronnie O’Sullivan/He Guoqiang
Mark Selby /Jak Jones vs Wu Yize/Lei Peifan
Monday 27 April
Second round
1pm
John Higgins/Ali Carter vs Ronnie O’Sullivan/He Guoqiang*
Mark Selby /Jak Jones vs Wu Yize/Lei Peifan*
7pm
Chris Wakelin/Liam Pullen vs Neil Robertson/Pang Junxu*
Si Jiahui/Hossein Vafaei vs Judd Trump/Gary Wilson*
Tuesday 28 April
Quarter-finals
10am
QF 1 – session 1
QF 3 – session 1
2.30pm
QF 2 – session 1
QF 4 – session 1
7pm
QF 1 – session 2
QF 3 – session 2
Wednesday 29 April
Quarter-finals
10am
QF 3 – session 3*
QF 2 – session 2
2.30pm
QF 1 – session 3*
QF 4 – session 2
7pm
QF 2 – session 3*
QF 4 – session 3*
Thursday 30 April
Semi-finals
1pm
SF 1 – session 1
7pm
SF 2 – session 1
Friday 1 May
Semi-finals
10am
SF 1 – session 2
2.30pm
SF 2 – session 2
7pm
SF 1 – session 3
Saturday 2 May
Semi-finals
10am
SF 2 – session 3
2.30pm
SF 1 – session 4*
7pm
SF 2 – session 4*
Sunday 3 May
Final
1pm
Session 1
7pm
Session 2
Monday 4 May
Final
1pm
Session 3
7pm
Session 4*
