World Championship 2026: Match schedule, BBC TV times & results

China's Wu Yize will face 2005 winner Shaun Murphy in the World Snooker Championship after two memorable semi-finals.

Wu, 22, stared defeat in the face against Mark Allen, who missed a simple match-winning black to allow his opponent to draw level and, subsequently, take the final-frame decider.

Murphy knocked out four-time champion John Higgins to edge closer to a second world title.

The Englishman beat defending champion and top seed Zhao Xintong in the last eight, with Wu competing in the final for the first time.

Wu ended the challenge of Iranian qualifier Hossein Vafaei with a commanding 13-8 victory, while Allen beat former finalist Barry Hawkins 13-11 in the other quarter-final.

The final starts from 13:00 BST on Sunday and will come to a conclusion on Monday.

You can watch every shot of the World Championship live on BBC iPlayer, with text updates on the BBC Sport website and app, and extensive coverage on BBC TV.

All times BST and subject to late changes, while session times could finish earlier or later than listed below. *denotes final session

13:00

Shaun Murphy (8) v Wu Yize (10)

19:00

Shaun Murphy (8) v Wu Yize (10)

Live coverage

13:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app

13:00-16:00 - BBC One

19:00-22:00 - BBC Two

13:00

Shaun Murphy (8) v Wu Yize (10)

19:00

Shaun Murphy (8) v Wu Yize (10)

13:00-23:00 - uninterrupted coverage on BBC iPlayer, website and app

13:00-16:00 - BBC Two

19:00-22:00 - BBC Two

Chang Bingyu made a magnificent 147 break against Luca Brecel in the qualifying tournament to earn himself a £147,000 bonus and a shot at the £15,000 highest break prize.

The Chinese player, who lost his match to Brecel, also made a 147 in the qualifying tournament for the UK Championship and earned the £147,000 bonus on offer for any player making two maximums in snooker's major tournaments.

The highest break at the Crucible is currently 145, scored by Mark Allen in the second session of his semi-final.

Wu Yize is next with a 142 break in the same match.

After that there have been five 140 breaks, a score achieved twice by Allen and once by three players - Shaun Murphy, Barry Hawkins and Wu.

Allen made a 147 break in his second-round match against Chris Wakelin last year, becoming only the 11th player to make a 147 at the Crucible.

The maximum was the 15th at the venue in the tournament's history and the first since Mark Selby's clearance in the 2023 final.

With comprehensive television coverage across BBC One, BBC Two and BBC Four, and uninterrupted streaming on BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app, audiences won't miss a moment from the first break to the final frame.

Legends of the game Stephen Hendry, Steve Davis, John Parrott, Ken Doherty and Dennis Taylor will offer their expert analysis throughout the tournament.

The BBC Sport website and app will provide daily coverage via live streams and live text pages, while BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds will have regular updates throughout.

BBC Sport social media channels will deliver behind-the-scenes content as well as highlight clips from the tournament and player interviews.

The winner receives £500,000 and there was a total prize fund of almost £2.4m.

Winner: £500,000

Runner-up: £200,000

Semi-finalists: £100,000

Quarter-finalists: £50,000

Last 16: £30,000

Last 32: £20,000

Highest break (qualifying stage included): £15,000

2025: Zhao Xintong (China) *

2024: Kyren Wilson (England) *

2023: Luca Brecel (Belgium) *

2022: Ronnie O'Sullivan (England)

2021: Mark Selby (England)

2020: Ronnie O'Sullivan (England)

2019: Judd Trump (England)

2018: Mark Williams (Wales)

2017: Mark Selby (England)

2016: Mark Selby (England)

* first-time winner

Shaun Murphy powered to a 17-15 victory over John Higgins to reach his fifth Crucible final.

The 43-year-old is bidding to collect a second title, 21 years on from his first - having finished as the runner-up on his three previous appearances in the Championship match.

The second semi-final was an all-time classic - in the second session Wu Yize and Mark Allen played out the longest frame in Crucible history, lasting more than 100 minutes - and China's Wu went on to win the match in a final-frame decider, but only after Allen missed a simple black to go through in the previous frame.

Semi-final results

Shaun Murphy (8) 17-15 John Higgins (5)

Wu Yize (10) 17-16 Mark Allen (14)

Zhao Xintong's hopes of lifting the Crucible curse were ended in the quarter-finals by Shaun Murphy.

Zhao, 29, had been aiming to become the only first-time winner to defend his crown since the tournament moved to the Crucible Theatre in 1977.

Wu Yize ended the run of Iran's Hossein Vafaei, the only qualifier to win a match this year, with an impressive victory.

Quarter-final results

Mark Allen (14) 13-11 Barry Hawkins (11)

Shaun Murphy (8) 13-10 Zhao Xintong (1)

Wu Yize (10) 13-8 Hossein Vafaei

John Higgins (5) 13-10 Neil Robertson (4)

Ronnie O'Sullivan's bid for a record eighth world title came to an end with a 13-12 second-round defeat by Higgins, the man he beat to win his first world title in 2001.

Iran's Vafaei, the only qualifier left in the championship, held his nerve to knock out second seed Trump 13-12.

Former champions Kyren Wilson, Mark Williams and Mark Selby also went out in the last 16, leaving 10th seed Wu Yize as the highest seed left in the bottom half of the draw.

Second round results

Shaun Murphy (8) 13-3 Xiao Guodong (9)

Zhao Xintong (1) 13-9 Ding Junhui (16)

Barry Hawkins (11) 13-9 Mark Williams (6)

Mark Allen (14) 13-9 Kyren Wilson (3)

John Higgins (5) 13-12 Ronnie O'Sullivan (12)

Wu Yize (10) 13-11 Mark Selby (7)

Neil Robertson (4) 13 -7 Chris Wakelin (13)

Hossein Vafaei 13-12 Judd Trump (2)

For only the third time in Crucible history, all but one of the 16 seeds made it through to the second round.

Iran's Hossein Vafaei was the only qualifier to progress thanks to a comprehensive 10-3 victory over 15th seed Si Jiahui.

Qualifiers Stan Moody, Liam Pullen, Antoni Kowalski and He Guoqiang all made their Crucible debuts.

First round results

Zhao Xintong (1) 10-7 Liam Highfield

Mark Allen (14) 10-6 Zhang Anda

Barry Hawkins (11) 10-4 Matthew Stevens

Mark Williams (6) 10-4 Antoni Kowalski *

Xiao Guodong (9) 10-6 Zhou Yuelong

Ding Junhui (16) 10-5 David Gilbert

John Higgins(5) 10-7 Ali Carter

Kyren Wilson (3) 10-7 Stan Moody *

Wu Yize (10) 10-2 Lei Peifan

Judd Trump (2) 10-5 Gary Wilson

Shaun Murphy (8) 10-9 Fan Zhengyi

Chris Wakelin (13) 10-6 Liam Pullen *

Ronnie O'Sullivan (12) 10-2 He Guoqiang *

Mark Selby (7) 10-2 Jak Jones

Hossein Vafaei 10-3 Si Jiahui (15)

Neil Robertson (4) 10-4 Pang Junxu

* denotes Crucible debutant

Stan Moody and Liam Pullen both made their debuts after coming through the qualifying tournament at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield.

Moody gave 2024 champion Wilson a tough test before falling to a 10-7 defeat, while Pullen lost 10-6 to 13th seed Chris Wakelin.

China's He was another debutant, while Antoni Kowalski, 22, became the first player from Poland to play at the Crucible.

Former finalists Matthew Stevens, Ali Carter and Jak Jones all claimed one of the 16 qualifying places before being beaten in the first round.

Iran's Hossein Vafaei was the only unseeded player to make it into the second round thanks to a comprehensive 10-3 victory over 15th seed Si Jiahui.