The venue for the 2029 World Snooker Championship remains undecided, but players are backing Belfast's Waterfront Hall to stage the event while the Crucible undergoes renovation. The Sheffield theatre has hosted the tournament since 1977 and will continue to do so under a contract running until at least 2045. However, the Crucible will be revamped and extended by 500 seats, meaning it will be unavailable for the 2029 championship while work takes place. That is the best-case scenario, with the possibility that the event may need a temporary home for longer than one year.
Players back Waterfront Hall
Northern Ireland's Jordan Brown, who reached the quarter-finals of the Northern Ireland Open last season, believes the venue is ready for the sport's biggest event. The Waterfront Hall, with a snooker capacity of around 1,400, currently hosts the Northern Ireland Open, which returns this month.
'I'm not being biased because it's obviously my home tournament and venue, but I've said it loads of times in the past that the Waterfront would be a perfect venue to hold the World Championship,' Brown told Metro. 'Anywhere you sit in the crowd is good, with the way it's set up with balconies overlooking the arena. I think it's the absolute perfect venue, why not have it there?'
Lisowski's support
Jack Lisowski, who won last year's Northern Ireland Open final 9-8 against Judd Trump in Belfast, also endorsed the idea. 'It's a cool idea,' he told Metro. 'It gets my vote. I love the place. It's incredible.'
Lisowski will return to defend his title, starting against Huang Jiahao on Sunday, October 18. He described his victory in Belfast as 'very special,' adding: 'That was my dream when I started playing snooker, playing in somewhere like that, so it made it extra special. It couldn't have happened in a better place.'
