Chinese snooker players charged in match-fixing probe

Ten Chinese professional snooker players have been charged by the game’s governing body as part of an investigation into match fixing, in an embarrassing episode that threatens the sport’s standing in its most important growth market.

Zhao Xintong, the world number 9, and former Masters champion Yan Bingtao are among those facing charges, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association said on Wednesday.

All the players have been charged with fixing matches, while some are also facing charges related to betting on snooker matches and attempting to obstruct the investigation into the allegations.

The players had already been suspended from competing as the WPBSA probe widened since it launched in October. They will now face a disciplinary hearing, although a date has yet to be set. Possible sanctions for the those found guilty include lengthy bans from the game.

An estimated 50mn people play snooker in China, making it one of the country’s most popular sports. Almost a quarter of the world’s top 100 players are Chinese. Tournaments can attract TV audiences in the tens of millions and, before the Covid-19 pandemic, around a third of events on the World Tour were staged in China.

Rapid growth has made China a vital commercial market for snooker, which originated as an off-duty pursuit for British military officers stationed in India in the 19th century. A new record for attendance at a live snooker match was set at a tournament in Hong Kong in October, where more than 5,000 people watched reigning world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan defeat Ng On Yee.

Snooker has strict rules on betting and works closely with technology company Sportradar to monitor suspicious activity in gambling markets. Since 2012, a dozen players have faced disciplinary action related to betting rules, but the sport has not experienced anything on the scale of the current scandal.

The charges came at an awkward moment for snooker, which is hoping to relaunch live events in China soon after a two-year hiatus caused by Covid and the country’s strict approach to containing the virus.

Earlier this month, the Chinese Billiards & Snooker Association said it “firmly opposes game manipulation, gambling, and other behaviour that violates the integrity and ethics of sport, and will make further punishments based on the final outcome of the WPBSA investigation”.