BARRY HEARN expects the future of the Snooker World Championship to be decided by the end of this year – and it “comes down to hard cash”;.
Positive informal talks were held on Thursday morning with Hearn and City Council officials and they will all meet again in three months’ time.
The contract to stay at the Crucible expires in 2027 and Hearn, 76, wants more “respect”; shown as the parties try to negotiate a new deal.
Hearn, president of Matchroom Sport, has threatened to take the event away from its spiritual home of Sheffield and perhaps go abroad, especially given his close business ties to Saudi Arabia.
Plans to expand the 980-seater venue are one option but there are limitations to what can be done and within an appropriate time frame.
It is likely a site fee, boosted by government funding, might be written into the next contract should a compromise be reached.
Hearn, who managed Steve Davis during his six world championship wins, said: “I want a bit more respect. We love Sheffield. We love the Crucible.
“In any relationship if the other side doesn’t love you back, it’s destined for failure.
“So, at the moment we’re engaged and I’m hoping in the next few months we’re going to get married again. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.
“I was impressed with the passion and commitment that Sheffield Council have got for . We view the Crucible as the home of snooker.
“But again, we have to live in the real world. We agreed to meet in another three months with a view to knowing exactly where we are by the end of this year. And the pressure is on.
“Both sides are really happy here with each other, but we can’t turn away from the realities of sports life, which is centred around prize money.
“We have to do something big for the players because they deserve it. This event’s going to be seen by 300-400 million people. Does it get the respect?
“So the talks went well. There was a frank exchange of the problems that we face.
“I think both of us agree that this is something where Sheffield can only go so far, but with government assistance it can go further and it can be maintained.
“So the onus is still on Sheffield to come up with something in line with government, in line with our thinking of where the game stands in terms of prestige and respect.
“This is a major event in England. But there’s a huge amount of money outside of the UK to stage the World Snooker Championship.
“Give me the respect. Help me to do what I want to do and I won’t be outrageous in my demands. I feel we’re both on the same side. I’m a little more optimistic today than I was yesterday.”;
The PDC have bumped up the prize money for the World champion to £1million this Christmas and Hearn wants to do the same for a future snooker conqueror.
Yet he has no plans to change the format of the tournament – so it will be kept to 17 days of action involving 32 players and with 71 frames needed to be the best.
Britain’s leading sports promoter said: “The game’s in good shape. We have some problems, of course, Sheffield being one of them. And the other one is prize money.
“As much as it sounds pretty barbaric, it all comes down to pound notes.
“Darts players are going to be multimillionaires and snooker players need to catch them up.
“Hopefully, if all goes well, we can start thinking about a million-pound first prize instead of £500,000 for snooker. That’s clearly on the agenda as quickly as we can.
“We can sell this place out a dozen times if we wanted to. We need a halfway house.
“There’s a value to Sheffield City Council for having it in Sheffield. It comes down to hard cash.
“So, show me the money, show me the way forward, and hopefully we can sign another 10-year deal at the Crucible.”;
