With just over two weeks to go until the 2026 World Snooker Championship gets under way at the Crucible Theatre, the 16 seeded players are now confirmed.
As ever, the top 16 from the official world rankings after the conclusion of the penultimate ranking event of the campaign will be seeded automatically through to the venue stages in Sheffield.
That picture is now almost complete, with Ding Junhui confirmed as the 16th and final seed for this year’s World Snooker Championship.
Ding had been under pressure heading into the Tour Championship after suffering from a disappointing campaign and having not qualified for Manchester.
But his place in the top 16 has been secured following Thepchaiya Un-Nooh’s 10-8 defeat to Barry Hawkins in the first round on Tuesday.
The Thai, who recently captured the World Open title in Yushan, needed to win the Tour Championship and claim the £150,000 top prize to break into the elite bracket at the last moment.
Instead, Un-Nooh falls short and will head to the World Championship qualifiers as the 20th seed, where he must win two matches to reach the Crucible.
For Ding, it ends any lingering doubt about his participation at the sport’s most prestigious venue.
The 38 year-old was memorably forced into the qualifiers back in 2016 when he battled all the way to the final, but this time he will be guaranteed a place in the televised stages in Sheffield.
It boosts the chances of a blockbuster all-Chinese clash with Zhao Xintong that could materialise in the second round if both can safely negotiate their opening hurdles.
Zhao will arrive at the Crucible as the top seed following his breakthrough success for China a year ago.
Judd Trump, Kyren Wilson, and Neil Robertson are also locked into their positions as the second, third, and fourth seeds respectively.
Further down the list, several other positions are now confirmed.
Mark Allen (14), Si Jiahui (15), and Ding (16) are all guaranteed to remain in their current seeding slots, but plenty is still to be decided in the middle spots.
From fifth to 13th, the seeding order remains fluid depending on how the remaining matches in Manchester unfold.
John Higgins currently occupies the fifth seed provisionally, while players such as Mark Selby, Shaun Murphy, Barry Hawkins, and Chris Wakelin are all still in contention to shift positions.
Meanwhile, Mark Williams and Wu Yize are among those who have already exited the Tour Championship, ending their chances of climbing further up the seeding ladder.
Ronnie O’Sullivan and Xiao Guodong currently sit ninth and 12th respectively, but neither is involved in Manchester this week.
Looking at the provisional World Championship draw, several intriguing match-ups are already beginning to emerge.
O’Sullivan and Higgins could still be on course to meet as early as the second round, with Robertson also potentially featuring in the same quarter.
Either way, while Ding Junhui can now relax knowing his Crucible place is secure, the final shape of the World Championship draw remains an intriguing subplot as the Tour Championship reaches its conclusion.
Provisional World Snooker Championship Seeding
Fixed seeding position = blue
Participating in the Tour Championship quarter-finals = bold
Note: Ranking points for reaching the Tour Championship quarter-finals have been included
1. Zhao Xintong – £1,006,550 (vs 16th seed / qualifier in R2)
2. Judd Trump – £1,645,550 (vs 15th seed / qualifier in R2)
3. Kyren Wilson – £1,367,100 (vs 14th seed / qualifier in R2)
4. Neil Robertson – £1,165,550 (vs 13th seed / qualifier in R2)
5. John Higgins – £898,350 (vs 12th seed / qualifier in R2)
6. Mark Williams – £873,400 (vs 11th seed / qualifier in R2)
7. Mark Selby – £819,350 (vs 10th seed / qualifier in R2)
8. Shaun Murphy – £786,800 (vs 9th seed / qualifier in R2)
9. Xiao Guodong – £643,900
10. Wu Yize – £635,900
11. Barry Hawkins – £635,350
12. Ronnie O’Sullivan – £571,250
13. Chris Wakelin – £569,200
14. Mark Allen – £517,750
15. Si Jiahui – £469,400
16. Ding Junhui – £434,850
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20.Thepchaiya Un-Nooh – £366,600 (will play in the qualifying competition)
2026 Tour Championship draw
Quarter-Finals (bo19)
Neil Robertson vs Barry Hawkins
Shaun Murphy vs Judd Trump
Mark Selby vs John Higgins
Zhao Xintong vs Chris Wakelin
Featured photo credit: WST
It is interesting, although Ding Junhui lives in Sheffield, he has played 8 tournaments outside the UK while only performing in the English Open, Masters and UK Championships at home. He did not perform in almost half the tournaments.
Ding is just too inconsistent — I do not know about the most recent/current season, but as I recall, beginning with the 2024 Players Championship, he lost in the first round of 22 straight tournaments.