World Snooker Championship 2026 order of play today (Saturday 18 April)
Your complete guide to today's matches at the World Snooker Championship 2026.
The World Snooker Championship gets under way on Saturday 18 April with a blockbuster session of snooker in store at the Crucible.
If you thought the tournament may take a while to heat up, check out that match-up at 10am on BBC Two: Mark Allen faces Zhang Anda on the opening day of the tournament.
Northern Irish Allen is the No. 14 seed for this tournament, while Zhang is unseeded, allowing the players to collide at this early stage.
- Watch the World Snooker Championship live on TNT Sports via HBO Max on Amazon Prime Video and Sky Sports
Elsewhere, reigning champion Zhao Xintong opens his title defence against Liam Highfield, while Mark Williams and Barry Hawkins are among the other high-profile players in action throughout the day.
Radio Times brings you the daily order of play and full schedule for the World Snooker Championship 2026.
We'll keep this page updated throughout the course of the tournament with all the latest times and coverage details.
World Snooker Championship 2026 order of play
All UK time. All sessions live on TNT Sports, HBO Max and BBC iPlayer, plus BBC channels specified below. Coverage may switch channels mid-session, subject to change.
Saturday 18 April
From 10am on BBC Two
- R1: Zhao Xintong (1) v Liam Highfield
- R1: Mark Allen (14) v Zhang Anda
From 2:30pm on BBC Two
- R1: Xiao Guodong (9) v Zhou Yuelong
- R1: Mark Williams (6) v Antoni Kowalski
From 7pm on BBC Four
- R1: Zhao Xintong (1) v Liam Highfield
- R1: Barry Hawkins (11) v Matthew Stevens
Sunday 19 April
From 10am on BBC Two
- R1: Ding Junhui (16) v David Gilbert
- R1: Mark Allen (14) v Zhang Anda
From 2:30pm on BBC Two
- R1: John Higgins (5) v Ali Carter
- R1: Barry Hawkins (11) v Matthew Stevens
From 7pm on BBC Four
- R1: Xiao Guodong (9) v Zhou Yuelong
- R1: Mark Williams (6) v Antoni Kowalski
World Snooker Championship 2026 schedule and round dates
- First round: Saturday 18 – Thursday 23 April
- Second round: Thursday 23 – Monday 27 April
- Quarter-finals: Tuesday 28 – Wednesday 29 April
- Semi-finals: Thursday 30 April – Saturday 2 May
- Final: Sunday 3 – Monday 4 May
How to watch World Snooker Championship 2026 on TV and live stream
Coverage of the World Snooker Championship will be extensively shown across BBC, TNT Sports and HBO Max.
BBC Two will bear the weight of the coverage once the main draw starts, while certain sessions will be shown on BBC One, BBC Four and BBC Red Button. Every session will be live on BBC iPlayer so you won't miss a moment.
There are multiple ways to get TNT Sports. If you already have BT Broadband, you can add TNT Sports to your existing contract from just £18 per month. You can add the ‘Big Sport’ package for £40 per month which includes all TNT Sports and 11 Sky Sports channels via a NOW pass.
You can also access TNT Sports via HBO Max and stream directly to your smart TV or watch the matches on TNT Sports via a HBO Max sport pass without signing up to a contract.
HBO Max is the new streaming home of TNT Sports, showing events including live Premier League, FA Cup, UEFA Champions League, Premiership Rugby, UFC, Boxing and MotoGP. Learn more here: hbomax.com
Check out more of our Sport coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Authors
Michael Potts is the Sport Editor for Radio Times, covering all of the biggest sporting events across the globe with previews, features, interviews and more. He has worked for Radio Times since 2019 and previously worked on the sport desk at Express.co.uk after starting his career writing features for What Culture. He achieved a first-class degree in Sports Journalism in 2014.
