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Champion of Champions (snooker)

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Champion of Champions
Tournament information
VenueWembley Conference Centre (1978)
New London Theatre (1980)
Coventry Building Society Arena (2013–2019)
Marshall Arena (2020)
Bolton Whites Hotel (2021–present)
LocationLondon (1978, 1980)
Coventry (2013–2019)
Milton Keynes (2020)
Bolton (2021–present)
CountryEngland
Established1978
Organisation(s)WPBSA
Matchroom Sport
FormatNon-ranking event
Total prize fund£440,000[1]
Recent edition2024
Current champion Mark Williams (WAL)

The Champion of Champions is a professional non-ranking snooker tournament. It was held in 1978 and 1980 and was then revived in 2013 by Matchroom Sport. The reigning champion is Mark Williams, who won the title for the first time in 2024.

The Champion of Champions features winners of World Snooker events over the preceding 12 months, with the field topped up, if necessary, from the current World Rankings. In 2020, the tournament had a prize fund of £440,000, of which £150,000 went to the winner.

History

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The event was created in 1978 by boxing promoter Mike Barrett.[2] It was contested by four players at the Wembley Conference Centre in London, England,[3] and was played over two days, with the semi-finals on the first day and the final on the second day. World Champion Ray Reardon beat that year's Masters winner Alex Higgins 11–9 in the final.[3] Brief highlights were shown on ITV's World of Sport on the following afternoon.[4] The event was not held in 1979, but appeared again in 1980 at the New London Theatre in Drury Lane, London, in a different format. Ten players competed in the tournament, split into two groups. Each group played a round robin, with the winners of the groups advancing to the final. Doug Mountjoy beat John Virgo 10–8 to become champion. The tournament was then abandoned, since the audiences had been poor and the event was financially unsuccessful.[5]

It was revived in 2013 by Matchroom Sport, replacing the Premier League Snooker on the calendar.[6] Held in November at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry, and contested by 16 of the world's leading players,[7] the event was broadcast live in the United Kingdom on ITV4.[8] The 2013 and 2014 tournaments were won by Ronnie O'Sullivan,[9][10] but he chose not to defend the title in 2015;[11] that year, Neil Robertson defeated Mark Allen 10–5 to claim his first win in the tournament.[12] In 2016, John Higgins beat O'Sullivan 10–7.[13] O'Sullivan was beaten by Shaun Murphy in the 2017 final too,[14] but he took back the trophy in 2018, defeating Kyren Wilson 10–9.[15] Robertson also won 10–9 against Judd Trump in the 2019 final, claiming the title for the second time.[16] The 2020 final was a repeat of the final of the 2015 edition of the event, but this time Allen defeated Robertson 10–6.[17] In 2021, Trump won 10–4 against Higgins,[18] but he failed to defend the title in 2022, losing 6–10 to O'Sullivan, who won the tournament for the fourth time.[19] Trump was runner-up again in 2023, suffering a 3–10 loss this time to Mark Allen,[20] who became the third player to be champion more than once, after O'Sullivan and Robertson.

As a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 edition was relocated to the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes, in order to create a secure bubble, the same way as all other snooker tournaments were played in that season. The 2021 edition was held in Bolton for the first time, featuring a change to the dress code, as all players had special shirts with their nickname on the back; this change was met with mixed response by the players.

Winners

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Year Winner Runner-up Final score Venue City Season
Early events (non-ranking, 1978–1980)
1978[3]  Ray Reardon (WAL)  Alex Higgins (NIR) 11–9 Wembley Conference Centre London, England 1978/79
1980[5]  Doug Mountjoy (WAL)  John Virgo (ENG) 10–8 New London Theatre 1980/81
Matchroom Sport revival (non-ranking, 2013–present)
2013[21]  Ronnie O'Sullivan (ENG)  Stuart Bingham (ENG) 10–8 Ricoh Arena Coventry, England 2013/14
2014[22]  Ronnie O'Sullivan (ENG)  Judd Trump (ENG) 10–7 2014/15
2015[23]  Neil Robertson (AUS)  Mark Allen (NIR) 10–5 2015/16
2016[24]  John Higgins (SCO)  Ronnie O'Sullivan (ENG) 10–7 2016/17
2017[25]  Shaun Murphy (ENG)  Ronnie O'Sullivan (ENG) 10–8 2017/18
2018[26]  Ronnie O'Sullivan (ENG)  Kyren Wilson (ENG) 10–9 2018/19
2019[27]  Neil Robertson (AUS)  Judd Trump (ENG) 10–9 2019/20
2020[28]  Mark Allen (NIR)  Neil Robertson (AUS) 10–6 Marshall Arena Milton Keynes, England 2020/21
2021[29]  Judd Trump (ENG)  John Higgins (SCO) 10–4 University of Bolton Stadium Bolton, England 2021/22
2022[30]  Ronnie O'Sullivan (ENG)  Judd Trump (ENG) 10–6 2022/23
2023[31]  Mark Allen (NIR)  Judd Trump (ENG) 10–3 Toughsheet Community Stadium 2023/24
2024[32]  Mark Williams (WAL)  Xiao Guodong (CHN) 10–6 2024/25

References

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  1. ^ "Prize Fund". Champion of Champions Snooker. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  2. ^ "Snooker – World champion in semi-final faces Fagan". The Times. 2 November 1978. p. 13.
  3. ^ a b c "Daily Mirror Champion of Champions (1978)". snooker.org. 24 November 2023. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  4. ^ "Weekend broadcasting – Personal choice". The Times. 5 November 1978. p. 11.
  5. ^ a b Turner, Chris. "Other Non-Ranking and Invition Events". cajt.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk. Chris Turner's Snooker Archive. Archived from the original on 16 February 2012. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  6. ^ "O'Sullivan excited by new Champion of Champions event". ESPN. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
  7. ^ "888Casino Champion Of Champions Snooker tickets on sale". AZ Billiards. 9 July 2013. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
  8. ^ "ITV4 to Televise Champion of Champions". worldsnooker.com. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 12 June 2013. Archived from the original on 29 November 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
  9. ^ "Ronnie Is Champion Of Champions". World Snooker Tour. 25 November 2013. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020.
  10. ^ "O'Sullivan Wins Champion of Champions". World Snooker Tour. 9 November 2014. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020.
  11. ^ "O'Sullivan Declines Champion of Champions Invite". World Snooker Tour. 12 October 2015. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020.
  12. ^ "Robertson Is Champion Of Champions". World Snooker Tour. 15 November 2015. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020.
  13. ^ "Higgins Is Champion Of Champions". World Snooker Tour. 12 November 2016. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020.
  14. ^ "Murphy Is Champion Of Champions". World Snooker Tour. 12 November 2017. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020.
  15. ^ "O'Sullivan Edges Classic Wilson Final". World Snooker Tour. 11 November 2018. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020.
  16. ^ "Robertson Beats Trump In Classic Final". World Snooker Tour. 10 November 2019. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020.
  17. ^ "Allen Crowned Champion Of Champions". World Snooker Tour. 8 November 2020. Archived from the original on 9 November 2020.
  18. ^ "Trump Crowned Champion Of Champions". World Snooker Tour. 21 November 2021.
  19. ^ "Rocket Lands Fourth Champion of Champions Crown". World Snooker Tour. 6 November 2022.
  20. ^ "Allen Crushes Trump In Champion Of Champions Final". World Snooker Tour. 19 November 2023.
  21. ^ "888casino Champion of Champions (2013)". snooker.org. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  22. ^ "Dafabet Champion of Champions (2014)". snooker.org. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  23. ^ "188BET Champion of Champions (2015)". snooker.org. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  24. ^ "Dafabet Champion of Champions (2016)". snooker.org. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  25. ^ "188BET Champion of Champions (2017)". snooker.org. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  26. ^ "ManBetX Champion of Champions (2018)". snooker.org. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  27. ^ "ManBetX Champion of Champions (2019)". snooker.org. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  28. ^ "888sport Champion of Champions (2020)". snooker.org. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  29. ^ "Cazoo Champion of Champions (2021)". snooker.org. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  30. ^ "Cazoo Champion of Champions (2022)". snooker.org. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  31. ^ "Cazoo Champion of Champions (2023)". snooker.org. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  32. ^ "Grosvenor Casinos Champion of Champions (2024)". snooker.org. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
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