It’s an age-old question that is still debated to this day: is snooker a game or a sport? A case can certainly be made for both sides, with many labelling it a sport given the fact some superstars output physical exertion while playing, along with the money and drama involved. But, while many sports have focused on speeding things up to keep excitement levels at an all-time high all the time, a single frame alone in snooker can take well over an hour, as was the case when Mark Selby met Yan Bingtao (more on him later) in the second round of last year’s World Snooker Championship, with the duo playing out the longest frame in Crucible history at 85 minutes and 22 seconds.
Player outfits, meanwhile, remain somewhat old-fashioned and rigid, with Judd Trump – who was world number one at the time – recently calling for players to be allowed to wear more trendy clothes while playing.
In an age where cheerleaders, music, flashing lights and robotic cars carrying balls have infiltrated many other sports, snooker has remained true to itself and its humble traditions. But that is not to say that the dark arts of sports have not poked their head into this somewhat gentlemanly activity.
Gambling has sneaked into pretty much every sport and snooker has been no different, with world number one Ronnie O’Sullivan now a main promoter of gambling in snooker, even appearing at ICE London 2023 as part of his ambassador role with Delasport. But not even the wizard himself could have predicted what was to recently unfold in snooker, with an ongoing match-fixing scandal currently overshadowing much of the action on the table (or baize).
THE TIMELINE
The recent bad press actually began away from match-fixing, when in October 2022 Liang Wenbo was banned by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) – the sport’s governing body – pending the results of a misconduct investigation after being convicted of domestic-related assault. But soon came the alleged illicit gambling activity, with the Chinese national followed by compatriots Lu Ning, Li Hang, Zhao Jianbo, Bai Langning and Chang Bingyu, who were all suspended in early December as part of match-fixing allegations.
2021 Masters champion Bingtao’s suspension quickly followed, with Chen Zifan becoming the eighth player on the list. And in January 2023, fellow Chinese nationals Zhao Xintong – 2021 UK Championship winner – and Zhang Jiankang were added to the investigation, becoming the ninth and 10th Chinese players respectively to be placed under the spotlight.
Gambling Insider reached out to the WPBSA and the World Snooker Tour (WST) for a statement, but given that the investigation is ongoing, both opted not to make any comment to ensure it is not prejudiced in any way. Both instead redirected Gambling Insider to the WPBSA statement on 18th January 2022 which, among other things, read: “Following a detailed investigation by the WPBSA Integrity Unit, working closely with Sportradar, the WPBSA has decided that 10 snooker players have a case to answer” in respect of various alleged breaches of the WPBSA Conduct Regulations.
It continued: “The players are currently suspended from attending and competing on the World Snooker Tour and in other WPBSA-governed events until the conclusion of the hearing or hearings and the determination of this matter. This matter will be referred to a formal hearing before an Independent Disciplinary Tribunal that will take place at a venue and on a date to be confirmed.”
Gambling Insider did, however, receive comment from Michael Waring of SnookerHub, an organisation that aims to organise the UK’s amateur snooker information and make it accessible to all. “I can’t, of course, comment on the details of the current investigation but I am sure this won’t be the last time there are problems with betting and match-fixing,” said Waring. “There have been players banned before and some are still serving those bans.
If there are criminal gangs involved, as has been suggested by many, I doubt they will be concerned about the future of the player(s) involved. And if players have received what they perceive to be credible threats to their families, they are unlikely to refuse to go along with the demands. There doesn’t appear to be any solution to the problem but any players that do get caught should receive the appropriate punishment. The powers that be will simply have to get better at catching those involved.”
TWO SIDES TO EVERY STORY
As is always the case in life, there are two sides to every story, and it has been interesting to see how those within snooker itself have reacted to the scandal. Everyone inside and often outside the world of football will always perk their ears up and listen to whatever it is that legendary figures Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are saying, regardless of how insignificant their words at the time are.
“’Following a detailed investigation by the WPBSA Integrity Unit, working closely with Sportradar, the WPBSA has decided that 10 snooker players have a case to answer’ in respect of various alleged breaches of the WPBSA Conduct Regulations”
The same can be said of one of snooker’s legendary figures, Jimmy White, who aired his concerns immediately after Bingtao’s suspension, labelling it as “a really bad day for snooker.” Thanks to White’s reputation and indeed the situation as a whole, there will be many taking that same view. His counterpart Steve Davis – a six-time world snooker champion – called the situation “embarrassing.”
While the WPBSA undoubtedly shares that view, it has not taken such a critical line, instead arguing that snooker is played sportingly the majority of the time. Speaking after the ban handed to Bingtao – the most
high-profile player involved in the ongoing scandal that has rocked snooker – WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson said: “We really are making huge progress and the sport is played in the best of spirits 99.9% of the time. “Unfortunately, this morning there was a strong decision to suspend Yan Bingtao as a result of new evidence that came to light in an ongoing inquiry, which started in October with the suspension of Liang Wenbo.
“It involves a few players, and those players will remain suspended. We will not have any concerns about the sport being played in the arena. People are buying tickets and TV rights and watching our sport all over the world. It will be played in the spirit it should be played and we’ll ensure that, hence these suspensions.”
The WPBSA may just be entitled to such an opinion, with the strong track record over the past decade given further validation by figures from the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA), the leading global voice on integrity for the licensed betting industry.
Snooker’s name has barely been mentioned in annual IBIA suspicious betting activity reports over recent years.That said, the current scandal is by no means unprecedented, as alluded to by SnookerHub’s Waring. China’s Yu Delu was banned from snooker for 10 years and nine months following a match-fixing inquiry back
in 2018, while his compatriot Cao Yupeng also pleaded guilty to fixing and was banned for six years, although three and a half years of his sentence were suspended.
In Yupeng’s case, a total of 38 betting accounts using computer software attempted to place £250,000 ($300,800) in one second on the result of one of his matches, but the attempt failed miserably when Asian-based bookmakers’ own computer programmes raised suspicions, foiling the plot which could have landed a £1m profit.
Chinese nationals have not solely been in the spotlight, with Englishman Stephen Lee banned for 12 years in 2013 after being found guilty of seven match-fixing charges. He could make a potential return in October next year when his ban finishes but would have to repay £125,000 in outstanding legal fees. Interestingly, Lee has always denied the offences.
WHAT NEXT FOR SNOOKER?
So, while there are precedents, they are on a much more infrequent scale when compared to sports such as football and tennis, which have regularly been in the news in recent times when it comes to match-fixing. An FA Cup tie between Oxford United and Arsenal was under investigation at the beginning of this year, while the end of 2022 saw Brentford and England international Ivan Toney charged with over 250 alleged breaches of betting rules. Earlier last year, a total of 10 people were arrested by Irish police as part of an investigation into alleged match-fixing, with the 10 males arrested in Dublin, Cork and Limerick on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud in connection with football matches in the League of Ireland.
In recent tennis rulings, Chilean coach and ex-player Sebastián Rivera was banned from the sport for life after being found guilty of numerous match-fixing offences. He was found guilty of 64 offences, the most ever detected for a player by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) or its predecessor, the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU). Another recent case involves Bulgarian tennis chair umpire Stefan Milanov, who was banned for six months by the ITIA in December 2022 after admitting to placing multiple bets on the sport.
The likes of tennis (33), esports (16), football (13) and table tennis (10) were as usual big hitters in IBIA’s Q3 2022 data. Given that snooker represented just one of 76 suspicious alerts in the quarter, the lowly figure certainly seems innocent enough in the wider scheme of things, but the powers that be will not be one bit pleased with the current situation within snooker.
The sport took steps as recently as October to help the less successful players that may be struggling financially – and so perhaps more susceptible to match-fixing – by offering an advanced prize money scheme. The scheme means all 130 professionals on the WST are guaranteed minimum earnings of £20,000 for the 2022-23 season, but it doesn’t seem to have quite gone to plan when trying to curb match-fixing in this sport (or game, however you may view it). In terms of a timeline, the disciplinary hearings are scheduled to start on 24 April, during the World Championships. Let’s see how the fate of modern snooker lies once we know more.
