Snooker’s World Championship will stay at the Crucible after a landmark deal was struck between World Snooker Tour and Sheffield City Council.
The agreement secures future of the sport’s flagship competition at its current venue until at least 2045, with an option to extend for another five years to 2050.
A planned £45m (€52m) redevelopment of the theatre will provide the potential to add an additional 500 seats, but does mean the event must temporarily relocate in 2029 and possibly 2030 while that work is in progress.
The news will come as a relief to traditionalists who feared the global showpiece could vacate the Crucible, which has staged every World Championship since 1977, and possibly even…