One venue. One title. Nearly a century of history.
The World Snooker Championship is where careers are defined, and legacies are built.
From Joe Davis winning the very first title in 1927 to Zhao Xintong claiming the 2025 crown at the Crucible, the record books tell a brilliant story — if you know where to look.
World Snooker Championship Winners List from 1927 to 2026
This is the complete World Snooker Championship winners list, sorted by year, with every score and every runner-up included. Scroll to the section you need or read it all the way through.
Complete World Snooker Championship Winners List
Scores are shown as Champion’s frames – Runner-up’s frames.
| Year | Champion | Score | Runner-Up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | TBD | – | TBD |
| 2025 | Zhao Xintong | 18–12 | Mark Williams |
| 2024 | Kyren Wilson | 18–14 | Jak Jones |
| 2023 | Luca Brecel | 18–15 | Mark Selby |
| 2022 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | 18–13 | Judd Trump |
| 2021 | Mark Selby | 18–15 | Shaun Murphy |
| 2020 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | 18–8 | Kyren Wilson |
| 2019 | Judd Trump | 18–9 | John Higgins |
| 2018 | Mark Williams | 18–16 | John Higgins |
| 2017 | Mark Selby | 18–15 | John Higgins |
| 2016 | Mark Selby | 18–14 | Ding Junhui |
| 2015 | Stuart Bingham | 18–15 | Shaun Murphy |
| 2014 | Mark Selby | 18–14 | Ronnie O’Sullivan |
| 2013 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | 18–12 | Barry Hawkins |
| 2012 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | 18–11 | Ali Carter |
| 2011 | John Higgins | 18–15 | Judd Trump |
| 2010 | Neil Robertson | 18–13 | Graeme Dott |
| 2009 | John Higgins | 18–9 | Shaun Murphy |
| 2008 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | 18–8 | Ali Carter |
| 2007 | John Higgins | 18–13 | Mark Selby |
| 2006 | Graeme Dott | 18–14 | Peter Ebdon |
| 2005 | Shaun Murphy | 18–16 | Matthew Stevens |
| 2004 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | 18–8 | Graeme Dott |
| 2003 | Mark Williams | 18–16 | Ken Doherty |
| 2002 | Peter Ebdon | 18–17 | Stephen Hendry |
| 2001 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | 18–14 | John Higgins |
| 2000 | Mark Williams | 18–16 | Matthew Stevens |
| 1999 | Stephen Hendry | 18–11 | Mark Williams |
| 1998 | John Higgins | 18–12 | Ken Doherty |
| 1997 | Ken Doherty | 18–12 | Stephen Hendry |
| 1996 | Stephen Hendry | 18–12 | Peter Ebdon |
| 1995 | Stephen Hendry | 18–9 | Nigel Bond |
| 1994 | Stephen Hendry | 18–17 | Jimmy White |
| 1993 | Stephen Hendry | 18–5 | Jimmy White |
| 1992 | Stephen Hendry | 18–14 | Jimmy White |
| 1991 | John Parrott | 18–11 | Jimmy White |
| 1990 | Stephen Hendry | 18–12 | Jimmy White |
| 1989 | Steve Davis | 18–3 | John Parrott |
| 1988 | Steve Davis | 18–11 | Terry Griffiths |
| 1987 | Steve Davis | 18–14 | Joe Johnson |
| 1986 | Joe Johnson | 18–12 | Steve Davis |
| 1985 | Dennis Taylor | 18–17 | Steve Davis |
| 1984 | Steve Davis | 18–16 | Jimmy White |
| 1983 | Steve Davis | 18–6 | Cliff Thorburn |
| 1982 | Alex Higgins | 18–15 | Ray Reardon |
| 1981 | Steve Davis | 18–12 | Doug Mountjoy |
| 1980 | Cliff Thorburn | 18–16 | Alex Higgins |
| 1979 | Terry Griffiths | 24–16 | Dennis Taylor |
| 1978 | Ray Reardon | 25–18 | Perrie Mans |
| 1977 | John Spencer | 25–21 | Cliff Thorburn |
| 1976 | Ray Reardon | 27–16 | Alex Higgins |
| 1975 | Ray Reardon | 31–30 | Eddie Charlton |
| 1974 | Ray Reardon | 22–12 | Graham Miles |
| 1973 | Ray Reardon | 38–32 | Eddie Charlton |
| 1972 | Alex Higgins | 37–31 | John Spencer |
| 1971 | John Spencer | 37–29 | Warren Simpson |
| 1970 | Ray Reardon | 37–33 | John Pulman |
| 1969 | John Spencer | 37–24 | Gary Owen |
| 1968 | John Pulman | 39–34 | Eddie Charlton |
| 1966 | John Pulman | 5–2 | Fred Davis |
| 1965 | John Pulman | 39–12 | Fred Van Rensburg |
| 1965 | John Pulman | 25–22 | Rex Williams |
| 1965 | John Pulman | 37–36 | Fred Davis |
| 1964 | John Pulman | 40–33 | Rex Williams |
| 1964 | John Pulman | 19–16 | Fred Davis |
| 1957 | John Pulman | 39–34 | Jackie Rea |
| 1956 | Fred Davis | 38–35 | John Pulman |
| 1955 | Fred Davis | 38–35 | John Pulman |
| 1954 | Fred Davis | 45–26 | Walter Donaldson |
| 1953 | Fred Davis | 37–34 | Walter Donaldson |
| 1952 | Fred Davis | 38–35 | Walter Donaldson |
| 1952 | Horace Lindrum | 94–49 | Clark McConachy |
| 1951 | Fred Davis | 58–39 | Walter Donaldson |
| 1950 | Walter Donaldson | 51–46 | Fred Davis |
| 1949 | Fred Davis | 80–65 | Walter Donaldson |
| 1948 | Fred Davis | 84–61 | Walter Donaldson |
| 1947 | Walter Donaldson | 82–63 | Fred Davis |
| 1946 | Joe Davis | 78–67 | Horace Lindrum |
| 1940 | Joe Davis | 37–36 | Fred Davis |
| 1939 | Joe Davis | 43–30 | Sidney Smith |
| 1938 | Joe Davis | 37–24 | Sidney Smith |
| 1937 | Joe Davis | 32–29 | Horace Lindrum |
| 1936 | Joe Davis | 34–27 | Horace Lindrum |
| 1935 | Joe Davis | 25–20 | Willie Smith |
| 1934 | Joe Davis | 25–22 | Tom Newman |
| 1933 | Joe Davis | 25–18 | Willie Smith |
| 1932 | Joe Davis | 30–19 | Clark McConachy |
| 1931 | Joe Davis | 25–21 | Tom Dennis |
| 1930 | Joe Davis | 25–12 | Tom Dennis |
| 1929 | Joe Davis | 19–14 | Tom Dennis |
| 1928 | Joe Davis | 16–13 | Fred Lawrence |
| 1927 | Joe Davis | 20–11 | Tom Dennis |
On the gaps: The championship was suspended from 1941 to 1945 due to the Second World War and again from 1958 to 1963. The 1952 entry appears twice because two separate tournaments ran that year under different formats and player fields.
The Last 10 Snooker World Champions at a Glance
| Year | Champion | Runner-Up | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Zhao Xintong | Mark Williams | 18–12 |
| 2024 | Kyren Wilson | Jak Jones | 18–14 |
| 2023 | Luca Brecel | Mark Selby | 18–15 |
| 2022 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | Judd Trump | 18–13 |
| 2021 | Mark Selby | Shaun Murphy | 18–15 |
| 2020 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | Kyren Wilson | 18–8 |
| 2019 | Judd Trump | John Higgins | 18–9 |
| 2018 | Mark Williams | John Higgins | 18–16 |
| 2017 | Mark Selby | John Higgins | 18–15 |
| 2016 | Mark Selby | Ding Junhui | 18–14 |
Three of these ten finals featured John Higgins as runner-up — 2017, 2018, and 2019 — making him the most consistent nearly-man of the decade.
On the other side of the table, Kyren Wilson lost the 2020 final to O’Sullivan before returning five years later to win the 2024 title. The Crucible has a way of keeping stories going.
Who Has Won the Most World Snooker Championships?
All-Time Multiple Champions
| Player | Titles | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Joe Davis | 15 | 1927–1946 |
| Fred Davis | 8 | 1948–1956 |
| John Pulman | 8 | 1957–1968 |
| Stephen Hendry | 7 | 1990–1999 |
| Ronnie O’Sullivan | 7 | 2001–2022 |
| Ray Reardon | 6 | 1970–1978 |
| Steve Davis | 6 | 1981–1989 |
| John Higgins | 4 | 1998–2011 |
| Mark Selby | 4 | 2014–2021 |
| John Spencer | 3 | 1969–1977 |
| Mark Williams | 3 | 2000–2018 |
| Walter Donaldson | 2 | 1947, 1950 |
| Alex Higgins | 2 | 1972, 1982 |
Joe Davis: The Benchmark Nobody Reaches
Davis didn’t just win the first World Championship — he won the next 14 as well. He retired from the event in 1946 without ever losing a final. Fifteen titles, zero defeats on the biggest stage. No other player in any cue sport has a comparable record over the same event.
Hendry and O’Sullivan: Seven Each, Two Very Different Stories
Stephen Hendry collected all seven of his titles in a ten-year window, including four in a row from 1992 to 1995. It was one-man domination of the sport’s biggest stage. Ronnie O’Sullivan spread his seven over 21 years — his last came in 2022 when he was 46. What Hendry did in terms of concentration, O’Sullivan matched in endurance. Both arguments hold up, and both players know it.
Mark Selby: Four Titles, Never Flashy
Selby is sometimes underrated in these conversations. Four World Championship titles between 2014 and 2021 put him level with John Higgins and ahead of players who generated far more headlines. His 2016 win over Ding Junhui was particularly gritty – an 18–14 scoreline that didn’t reflect how close the match felt in patches.
Jimmy White: Six Finals, Zero Trophies
No list of World Championship records is complete without White. Six finals. 1984, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994. The first loss came against Steve Davis. The next five came against Hendry or John Parrott. He remains the finalist with the most appearances who has never won.
Snooker World Championship 2026: What We Know
The 2026 World Snooker Championship is being held at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield from 19 April to 5 May 2026.
Zhao Xintong, who beat Mark Williams 18–12 in last year’s final, is the defending champion.
This page will be updated with the 2026 winner and final score as soon as the tournament concludes.
World Snooker Championship Prize Money
| Round | Prize |
|---|---|
| Winner | £500,000 |
| Runner-up | £200,000 |
| Semi-finalists | £100,000 each |
| Quarter-finalists | £50,000 each |
| Total prize fund | ~£2.395 million |
The prize fund is distributed across all rounds of the tournament, not just the final stages.
Qualifying-round players also receive a share, which reflects how the World Snooker Tour structures its events across the full two-week schedule.
IBSF World Snooker Championship: Not the Same Event
If you’ve come across the IBSF World Snooker Championship in your research, it’s worth knowing that it is a completely separate competition.
The IBSF runs the amateur world championship through national federations — it has no connection to the professional event at the Crucible.
Players sometimes win IBSF titles early in their careers before turning professional.
Those results are not part of this list. Every name in the tables above refers solely to the professional World Snooker Championship.
FAQs
- Who has won the World Snooker Championship the most times?
Joe Davis won 15 times between 1927 and 1946 — the all-time record. In the modern professional era, Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan each hold 7 titles.
- Who is the current World Snooker Champion?
Zhao Xintong is the reigning champion after winning the 2025 final 18–12 against Mark Williams at the Crucible. The 2026 title is yet to be decided.
- What does the World Snooker Championship winner earn?
The champion receives £500,000. The total prize fund across the full tournament is approximately £2.395 million.
- Has any player won the World Championship from qualifying rounds?
Yes. Shaun Murphy won the 2005 title as a qualifier, defeating Matthew Stevens 18–16 in the final — one of the more notable underdog wins in recent history.
- When did the World Championship first move to the Crucible?
The Crucible Theatre in Sheffield has hosted the event every year since 1977.
- What is the IBSF World Snooker Championship?
It’s the amateur world championship run by the International Billiards and Snooker Federation through national associations. It’s a separate competition from the professional event at the Crucible.
Wrapping Up
The World Snooker Championship has been running for close to a century, and its winners’ list reads like a who’s who of the sport — from Joe Davis’s era-defining dominance to the competitive depth of the last decade, where six different players have claimed the title in ten years.
This page covers the complete record. The 2026 champion will be added here once the Crucible final is played.
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