Snooker Sponsorship Crisis

Snooker faces a financial black hole after a double hit of sponsors of two major tournaments have pulled out of their deals early.

World Championship sponsor 888.com has ended their contract just three years into a five-year deal, leaving the snooker calendar’s stellar event at the Crucible in Sheffield without a sponsor.

The invitational Wembley Masters is also in trouble after Saga Insurance pulled on a termination clause in their contract.

The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association, the game’s governing body, is now left with £1.5million worth of prize money to find. If sponsors fail to be found, this will come from their own coffers.

In a letter sent to its players, the WPBSA said: ‘Both companies have stated that the current economic climate is affecting marketing budgets in all industries and that market conditions had changed during the course of the agreements.’

‘We are currently out in the marketplace, proactively contacting potential sponsors through our sponsorship agency IMG.

‘We remain optimistic that we will find new sponsors for the World Championship and the Masters.’

Since 1970 and the government’s ban on tobacco companies sponsoring sporting events, snooker in the UK has had difficulty in securing sponsorship.

Royal London Watches and Maplin Electronics are also both in the final year of their deals for the Grand Prix and UK Championship respectively.