World Snooker Championships 2025: The Panel's 3 Selections For The Crucible

The 2025 World Snooker Championship gets underway on Saturday at the famous Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.

Defending champion Kyren Wilson will be aiming to break the "Crucible curse" as no first-time winner has successfully defended their title since the tournament moved to the venue in 1977.

The tournament features 32 players: the top 16 seeds and 16 qualifiers, the total prize fund is £2.3m with £500,000 awarded to the winner.

The outright betting looks as open as ever with Judd Trump heading the market at 4/1 with betting sites.

He is closely followed by Wilson, Mark Selby and Ronnie O’Sullivan, who are all trading at single-figure odds.

We preview the 2025 World Snooker Championship and provide two outright selections as well as taking a closer look at the 147 break market.

2025 Snooker World Championship Panel Picks:

• Panel Tip 1: Kyren Wilson To Win - 7/1 With Betfred
• Panel Tip 2: John Higgins To Win - 14/1 With BetVictor
• Panel Tip 3: Ronnie O'Sullivan To Make A 147 Break - 10/1 With William Hill

Kyren Wilson Can Break The "Crucible Curse"

Top seed Wilson leads the first quarter, facing the challenge of defending his title amidst the historical hoodoo.

He has been in fine form this season, picking up wins in the German Masters and the Players Championship, where he got the better of Trump in a 10-9 final thriller.

Potential challengers in this quarter include Jak Jones, who was last year's runner-up. 2010 winner Neil Roberston can’t be discounted either after he won last month's World Grand Prix.

Mark Allen is another live contender in this quarter, although he has not been in the best of form this season and has failed to ever reach a World Championship final in his career.

Wilson is odds-on to make it through his quarter which would likely tee up a mouth-watering semi-final clash against either Selby or O'Sullivan.

His crucible record matched with his recent form make him very difficult to fault and odds of 7/1 to make it successive World Championship titles represents good value.

World Snooker World Championship Tip 1: Kyren Wilson To Win - 7/1 With Betfred

Higgins Can Turn Back The Clock

Quarter 3 reads like a veterans’ reunion, with John Higgins, Mark Williams and Barry Hawkins all capable of going on a run. 

Higgins hasn’t lifted the trophy since 2011, but don’t let that fool you, he’s still a massive threat in Sheffield at odds of 12/1.

He has made three Crucible finals since 2017, most recently in 2019, and was a semi-finalist in 2023. 

The Scotsman is a four-time Crucible champion and he arrives at the peak of his powers with recent wins in the World Open and the Tour Championship.

What makes Higgins dangerous is his tactical intelligence and ability to dig deep when matches get scrappy. 

With the Crucible format built for players who can grind and recover, Higgins remains a dark horse capable of another deep run - maybe even a fairytale ending.

World Snooker World Championship Tip 2: John Higgins To Win - 12/1 With Coral

147 Watch: Who’ll Make History This Year?

There have been 13 maximum 147 breaks made at the Crucible since Cliff Thorburn made the first in 1983 with the most recent coming in 2023, when Selby thrilled fans with a perfect clearance in the semi-final.

With conditions perfect for high scoring and the standard of play as high as it’s ever been, another 147 break looks possible this year. 

Look out for players like Trump, O’Sullivan, and Zhao Xintong - all of whom have multiple maximums to their names and play an aggressive, fluent game ideal for big breaks.

But don’t sleep on Wilson either, he's chalked up multiple 147s in ranking events and has the calmness under pressure needed to string together the perfect break on the sport’s biggest stage.

Trump, O'Sullivan and Murphy share favouritsm in this market at 10/1 with betting apps and they are closely followed by the likes of Wilson, Selby and Robertson. 

World Snooker World Championship Tip 3: Ronnie O'Sullivan To Make A 147 Break - 10/1 With William Hill