Barry Hearn warns Crucible exit for World Snooker Championship could be ON as he says 'it's all about the money'

Barry Hearn has issued a stark warning to Sheffield City Council regarding the future of the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible.

And he says that unless the venue is demolished and replaced with a larger one, its days as host could be over after the current contract ends in 2027. The snooker supremo, who previously chaired World Snooker and now presides over Matchroom, made it clear that nostalgia won't play a part in the decision-making process, emphasising 'it's all about the money.'

Ronnie O'Sullivan, a seven-time world champion, had earlier sparked debate about the future of the iconic venue by suggesting that relocating the championship to Saudi Arabia or China could be more lucrative. In a separate incident, Hossein Vafaei criticised the conditions at the Crucible, describing it as "smelly" and likening the practice facilities to a garage, following his first-round defeat to Judd Trump.

Speaking to the BBC, Hearn expressed his commitment to keeping the event in Sheffield, saying: "I am doing absolutely everything I can to stay in Sheffield and it takes two to tango I'll stay here while we're wanted, and I think we're wanted."

However, he stressed the need for realism from the city council, pointing out: "But they've got to be realistic. We've said for the last few years we need a new venue that seats 2,500 to 3,000 people."

Hearn concluded with an ultimatum: "I'm looking for Sheffield to come to the party and if they do, we're staying. If they don't, they're really saying that we don't want to, so it's not really my call."

Saudi Arabia's burgeoning interest in snooker is set to shake up the sport, with plans for the kingdom to host its first ranking tournament next season. The World Masters of Snooker is also upping the ante, doubling the prize for sinking the golden ball to a whopping USD1million. Snooker boss Barry Hearn has expressed his willingness to relocate the World Championship from its long-standing home at the Crucible Theatre. He even suggested a rotating global schedule for the prestigious event.

"Why should the tournament have one home and why isn't the Crucible transported around the world to play one year in Saudi Arabia, one year in Beijing, one year in Sheffield? " Hearn questioned.

"The Crucible has got a fantastic history and it's been a massive part of my life, but we've got to live in the real world. There's a price for everything, whether we like it or not."

"I'd love to tell you we live in a fairy story, but it's not that simple. In any professional sport played by professional sportsmen, the first demand is prize money and they want to see it as big as possible, and we have a duty to those players."

"I believe next year we go through the £20million prize money, but you must never get complacent in your life and sit down and enjoy the luxury of saying 'job done'. There's never enough. It's all about the money get used to it."

Several leading snooker figures have defended the Crucible against criticism, with former champion Shaun Murphy branding Vafaei's remarks as "sacrilege" and six-time finalist Jimmy White dismissing them as "absolute nonsense".

Other top players like Judd Trump and Mark Allen recognise the dilemma faced by the sport's authorities, yet they have refrained from echoing O'Sullivan and Vafaei's calls for relocating the event.