The World Snooker Championship is the longest-running and most prestigious tournament in professional snooker. It is also the richest, with total prize money of £2,395,000 in 2023, including £500,000 for the winner. First held in 1927, it is now one of the three tournaments that make up snooker's Triple Crown Series. The reigning world champion is Luca Brecel.
Joe Johnson is an English former professional snooker player and regular snooker commentator for Eurosport. As an amateur player, he became the British Under-19 champion in 1971, defeating Tony Knowles in the final. After reaching the finals of the 1978 English Amateur Championship and the 1978 World Amateur Championship, he turned professional in 1979. He reached his first ranking final at the 1983 Professional Players Tournament, losing to Knowles, and reached the semi-finals of the 1985 Classic, losing to Cliff Thorburn.
Terence Martin Griffiths is a Welsh retired professional snooker player and current coach and pundit. After winning several amateur titles, including the Welsh Amateur Championship in 1975 and back-to-back English Amateur Championships in 1977 and 1978, Griffiths turned professional in June 1978 at the age of 30. In his second professional tournament, he qualified for the 1979 World Snooker Championship. He reached the final of the event where he defeated Dennis Taylor by 24 frames to 16. It was the only ranking event victory of his career. This was only the second time a qualifier had won the World Snooker Championship, after Alex Higgins in 1972; only Shaun Murphy in 2005 has since emulated the achievement. In 1988, Griffiths again reached the final of the competition. He was tied with Steve Davis, 8–8, but lost the match 11–18.
John Stephen Parrott, is an English former professional snooker player and television personality. He was a familiar face on the professional snooker circuit during the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s, and remained within the top 16 of the world rankings for fourteen consecutive seasons.
Desmond Rex Williams is a retired English professional snooker and billiards player. He was the second player to make an official maximum break, achieving this in an exhibition match in December 1965. Williams won the World Professional Billiards Championship from Clark McConachy in 1968, the first time that the title had been contested since 1951. Williams retained the title in several challenge matches in the 1970s, and, after losing it to Fred Davis in 1980, regained it from 1982 to 1983.
Anthony Knowles is an English former professional snooker player. He won the 1982 International Open and the 1983 Professional Players Tournament, and was a three times semi-finalist in the World Professional Snooker Championship in the 1980s. His highest world ranking was second, in the 1984/85 season.
Since 1927 the World Snooker Championship had been played as a single-elimination tournament, but between 1964 and 1968, it was defended over seven challenge matches. Following a hiatus after the 1957 World Professional Match-play Championship, the event was revived by Rex Williams on a challenge basis, with the champion being opposed by prominent players. This began in 1964, organised by the Billiards Association and Control Council. The 1957 champion John Pulman contested and won all seven challenge matches against various opponents in the next five years, until the tournament reverted to a knock-out format in 1969.
The 1984–85 snooker season was a series of snooker tournaments played between July 1984 and May 1985. The following table outlines the results for the ranking and the invitational events.
The 1985–86 snooker season was a series of snooker tournaments played between July 1985 and May 1986. The following table outlines the results for ranking events and the invitational events.
The 1988–89 snooker season was a series of snooker tournaments played between July 1988 and May 1989. The following table outlines the results for the ranking and invitational events.
The 1986–87 snooker season was a series of snooker tournaments played between July 1986 and May 1987. The following table outlines the results for the ranking and invitational events.
The World Snooker Tour (WST) is the main professional snooker tour, consisting of approximately 128 players competing on a circuit of up to 28 tournaments each season. The World Snooker Tour is administered by World Snooker Ltd, the commercial arm of professional snooker, which introduced the World Snooker Tour name, logo, and revised website as part of a 2020 rebranding. The principal stakeholder in World Snooker Ltd is Matchroom Sport, which owns 51 percent of the company; the sport's governing body, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA), owns 26 percent. To compete on the World Snooker Tour, players must be WPBSA members.
Dennis Taylor is a Northern Irish retired professional snooker player and current commentator. In the 1985 World Snooker Championship final, against defending champion Steve Davis, Taylor lost the first eight frames, but recovered to win 18–17 in a duel on the last black ball. The final's conclusion attracted 18.5 million viewers, setting UK viewership records for any post-midnight broadcast and for any broadcast on BBC Two that still stand.
The 1987–88 snooker season was a series of snooker tournaments played between 29 June 1987 and 15 May 1988. The following table outlines the results for the ranking and invitational events.
The 1984 Carlsberg Challenge was a non-ranking snooker tournament, which took place between 14 and 16 September 1984. The tournament featured four professional players and was filmed in RTÉ Studios, Dublin, for broadcast on RTÉ.
The 1985 Carlsberg Challenge was a non-ranking snooker tournament, which took place between 6 and 8 September 1985. The tournament featured four professional players and was filmed in RTÉ Studios, Dublin, for broadcast on RTÉ.
The 1986 Carlsberg Challenge was a non-ranking invitational snooker tournament, which took place between 15 and 17 September 1986. The tournament featured four professional players and was filmed in RTÉ Studios, Dublin, for broadcast on RTÉ.
The 1987 Carling Challenge was a non-ranking snooker tournament, which took place between 14 and 16 September 1987. The tournament featured four professional players and was filmed in RTÉ Studios, Dublin, for broadcast on RTÉ.
The 1988 Fosters Professional was a non-ranking invitational snooker tournament, which took place between 3 and 5 October 1988. The tournament featured four professional players and was filmed in RTÉ Studios, Dublin, for broadcast on RTÉ.
Georgina Aplin is an English former professional snooker player.
Mike Hallett 
