The most important event in professional snooker is the World
Championship, held annually since 1927 (except during the Second
World War and between 1958 and 1963). The tournament has been held
at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield (England) since 1977, and was
sponsored by Embassy from 1976 to 2005. Due to the fact that
tobacco companies are no longer allowed to sponsor sporting events
in the United Kingdom after 2005, the World Snooker Championship
had to find a new sponsor. It was announced in January 2006 that
the 2006-2010 world championships would be sponsored by online
casino 888.com.
Discussion has occurred about the whereabouts of future World
Championships, focusing on the possibility of moving the tournament
to another city (either in the UK or overseas), or to a bigger
venue to accommodate the high spectator demand. This was concluded
in 2005 with confirmation that the event will stay in Sheffield for
at least a further five years. However, there are plans still to
replace the Crucible in Sheffield, by building a new, high-capacity
billiards arena.
The group of tournaments that come next in importance are the
ranking tournaments. Players in these tournaments score world
ranking points. A high ranking ensures qualification for next
year's tournaments, invitations to invitational tournaments and an
advantageous draw in tournaments.
Third in line are the invitational tournaments, to which most of
the highest ranked players are invited. The most important
tournament in this category is The Masters, which to most players
is the second or third most sought-after prize.
To make snooker into a faster sport, in-line with Twenty-20
cricket, organised by Matchroom Sport Chairman Barry Hearn in
conjunction with Sky, the shot-timed BetFred Premier League was
established, with the top eight players in the world invited to
compete at regular United Kingdom venues, televised on Sky Sports,
and syndicated worldwide. Ronnie O'Sullivan is the current
champion. Players have twenty-five seconds to take each shot, with
a small number of time-outs per player.
There are also other additional snooker championships that have
less importance, which don't give any world ranking points and
aren't televised. These can change on a year-to-year basis
depending on calendars and sponsors. The World Snooker website has
full details.