The 2025 Champion of Champions is simply a few months away with document four-time winner Ronnie O’Sullivan presently set to not characteristic within the draw.
The celebrated invitational has been a daily fixture on the calendar since 2013 with the lineup comprising a lot of the earlier yr’s greatest title winners.
This yr’s Champion of Champions will likely be staged on the Mattioli Enviornment in Leicester from November tenth to November sixteenth, and there aren’t many alternatives left to safe an invite.
Who’s within the 2025 Champion of Champions draw?
Though the factors hasn’t been formally launched but, we will make legitimate assumptions as to who will certainly be within the 2025 draw based mostly on the way it has labored in earlier seasons.
Mark Williams will clearly be returning because the reigning champion having obtained his arms on the trophy for the primary time final yr by beating Xiao Guodong within the closing.
Xiao’s current profitable defence of his Wuhan Open crown can have the 36 year-old from China additionally within the working once more.
A number of the game’s greatest names are set to be concerned, together with world champion Zhao Xintong and UK champion Judd Trump.
Shaun Murphy could have simply dropped out of the highest 16 for the primary time in virtually 20 years, however the Magician will likely be within the Champion of Champions because the reigning Masters winner.
Mark Selby and Stephen Maguire will characteristic courtesy of their respective successes on the invitational and rating variations of Championship League Snooker – occasions which are, just like the Champion of Champions, promoted by Matchroom Sport.
World numbers two and three Kyren Wilson and Neil Robertson have every received a number of occasions to qualify, in the meantime.
Wilson’s German Masters, Gamers Championship, and Shanghai Masters wins make sure that he’ll try to assert a maiden Champion of Champions crown this yr.
Two-time winner Robertson will get an invitation via his victories on the World Grand Prix and the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters.
Event wins on the World Open and the Tour Championship will even be greater than sufficient to see 2016 winner John Higgins return to the lineup.
Elsewhere, Lei Peifan will likely be a assured debutant within the 2025 Champion of Champions draw via his shock success on the Scottish Open.
Who may miss out?
Ronnie O’Sullivan is the highest-profile title who may miss out on a spot within the 2025 Champion of Champions draw.
A winner in 2013, 2014, 2018, and 2022, O’Sullivan hasn’t received silverware on the principle tour since his victory on the World Masters of Snooker in early 2024.
Previously, if there weren’t sufficient champions from the earlier yr to finish the 16-strong subject, top-ups had been added from the rating listing.
That will put world quantity 4 O’Sullivan in line to safe an invite because the highest-ranked participant who has not already certified.
Nevertheless, along with the counting occasions which are left on the calendar to qualify, there are a number of different winners since final yr’s Champion of Champions who would doubtless be requested to take part earlier than that might occur.
Mark Allen was victorious on the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship in December, whereas Bai Yulu and Alfie Burden had been winners on the Girls’s and Seniors World Championships respectively.
Tom Ford additionally earned his maiden rating occasion triumph on the Snooker Shoot Out, and if all of those gamers had been invited it will take the whole variety of champions to fifteen.
Different notable names who received’t be within the 2025 Champion of Champions as issues stand are Ding Junhui, Barry Hawkins, and Si Jiahui.
What occasions are left?
There are 5 rating occasions left between now and the Champion of Champions in November.
Despite the fact that the qualifying standards hasn’t been formally introduced, there’s no purpose to imagine that any of those tournaments received’t present an avenue to compete in Leicester.
The upcoming English Open, which runs from September eleventh to twentieth in Brentwood, is the subsequent alternative to qualify however Ronnie O’Sullivan received’t be concerned after opting to skip the season’s opening Residence Nations Collection occasion.
The British Open will then happen the next week in Cheltenham with the Xi’an Grand Prix (Oct 7-13) and the Northern Eire Open (Oct 19-26) on the schedule for subsequent month.
The ultimate alternative will doubtless be on the Worldwide Championship, which runs the week earlier than the Champion of Champions from November 2nd to ninth.
Extra particulars and information associated to all these tournaments will likely be supplied proper right here on SnookerHQ.com.
Provisional 2025 Champion of Champions subject
*unofficial standards*
1. Mark Williams – defending champion
2. Zhao Xintong – world champion
3. Judd Trump – UK champion
4. Shaun Murphy – Masters champion
5. Neil Robertson – Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters, World Grand Prix
6. John Higgins – Tour Championship, World Open
7. Mark Selby – Championship League Snooker (I), Welsh Open
8. Stephen Maguire – Championship League Snooker (R)
9. Kyren Wilson – German Masters, Gamers Championship, Shanghai Masters
10. Lei Peifan – Scottish Open
11. Xiao Guodong – Wuhan Open
Upcoming occasions
12. English Open
13. British Open
14. Xi’an Grand Prix
15. Northern Eire Open
16. Worldwide Championship
Different champions who may qualify if there are extra repeat winners
# Mark Allen – Riyadh Season Snooker Championship
# Bai Yulu – World Girls’s Snooker Championship
# Alfie Burden – World Seniors Championship
# Tom Ford – Snooker Shoot Out
Featured picture credit score: WST
