ITV4 will no longer be the home of coverage of World Snooker’s Players Championship and Tour Championship.
- 5 gains the broadcast rights for both events.
- 2026 British Open also making the switch from ITV4.
- Latest in a series of sports acquisitions by 5 as other broadcasters tighten their belts.
Two key events on the global World Snooker Tour calendar for 2025-26 – the Players Championship and Tour Championship – will both be televised live by 5 for the first time. The deal between the World Snooker Tour (WST) and Paramount-owned 5 means both world ranking events will remain available to UK viewers on a free-to-air basis.
ITV4 had been the long-running home to live television coverage. The broadcaster lost out amidst reports of ongoing cost-cutting at ITV. Last September, ITV announced it had only signed a one-year extension to its snooker deal.
The WST-Paramount deal also includes snooker’s British Open starting from 2026. There will be no changes to broadcast arrangements for this year’s event.
When will 5 start showing live snooker?
5 will make its snooker debut on 16 February 2026, with coverage of the 2026 Players Championship at the Telford International Centre. The event features the top 16 players from the Johnstone’s Paint One-Year Rankings.
The top 12 players on the same list graduate to the Tour Championship, which 5 will cover live from Manchester from 30 March to 5 April 2026.
5 hasn’t confirmed where its coverage will be broadcast, i.e. how much will be shown live on its main channel and whether some coverage will appear on 5ACTION. Streamers will be able to follow all the action via the 5 app. 5 is also yet to confirm its presenter and commentator line-up.
5 builds its portfolio of live sport
2025 has seen 5 begin to flex its muscle in securing coverage of live sporting events. Within the last three months, the broadcaster formerly known as Channel 5 picked up rights to selected FIFA Club World Cup games and live Cricket. 5 picked up live Cricket after the BBC failed to retain all of its cricket rights after reportedly not making an “acceptable bid” to the ECB. Once again, 5 benefitting from the financial restraints of its rivals.
However, the World Snooker Tour and the BBC did agree a long-term agreement to keep coverage of the World Championship, UK Championship and The Masters live on BBC channels until 2032.
Corporate comment
Responding to the news, Ben Frow, Chief Content Officer, 5 and Paramount UK, commented:
“We are delighted to bring the World Snooker Tour to 5. The Tour Championship, Players Championship and British Open are top ranking tournaments featuring the world’s best players and making them available to view on free-to-air TV continues our mission to keep elite live sport accessible for fans across the UK.”
WST Chairman, Steve Dawson, added:
“We are delighted to be working with 5 for the first time and to add a new broadcaster to our tour. Snooker has a long history of providing fans with free to air events with extensive live coverage so this is fantastic news for everyone who follows our sport. The Players Championship and Tour Championship are elite events contested only by the best of the best. Players are striving all season to climb the one year list and earn a place in these prestigious tournaments.
And from 2026, 5 will also broadcast the British Open which is a historic event with its own unique identity including a random draw. We look forward to working with the 5 team on these events and ensuring that an outstanding product is delivered to snooker’s consistently huge audience. Our sport had incredible viewing figures throughout last season and we expect to see that trend continue as we grow across the world.”
By: Marc Thornham | Image: WST