WPBSA chairman Jason Ferguson targets snooker at Olympic and Paralympic Games 2032 after spending a 'lifetime knocking doors down that are locked'
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2025/10/22/image-068d0790-e404-47d7-bb28-adf4a3f67059-68-310-310.png)
Updated 02/07/2026 at 21:18 GMT+1
React to this story
Jason Ferguson, chairman of the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) and director of the World Snooker Tour (WST), has spoken bullishly for the first time about making snooker an Olympic sport by 2032, declaring: "We have everything going for us."
Saudi Arabia Masters
Image credit: Getty Images
Despite years of discussion - and previous bids - snooker has never secured a place on the programme for the Olympics.
While snooker is recognised by the International Olympic Committee through the World Confederation of Billiards Sports, recognition alone does not guarantee inclusion.
Competition for places is fierce, with the IOC increasingly favouring sports that broaden the Games' global appeal, attract younger audiences and fit within increasingly restrictive scheduling and venue requirements.
In recent Olympic cycles, sports such as skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing have been embraced as part of the IOC's drive to modernise the Games, while breaking also made its Olympic debut in Paris, before falling from the programme for Los Angeles 2028.
Ferguson was speaking to Jojo Qiao, author of the global leadership platform and podcast Jojo's Cross Borders - and the 57-year-old is determined to help launch snooker as an Olympic sport by the time the 2023 Games in Australia come around.
"Snooker is a huge sport, and it's maybe the biggest sport not in the Olympics," Ferguson said.
"For new sports to get in is a huge challenge. We need to streamline our efforts, join forces and go forward. Our target is 2032 in Brisbane.
"We have snooker on the ground in Australia and a great champion in Neil Robertson, and we have a global sport in key markets.
"We have everything going for us. I have spent a lifetime knocking down doors that were locked.
"We need to keep banging the drum and for fans to support us. And we're ready for the Paralympics too.
"My team have been in Thailand for the World Disability Championship, we have spent 10 years building a full para sport for snooker which is now fully operational worldwide."
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2026/07/02/image-a51508e2-912d-4f7b-a5fa-73f32307d6b6.jpeg)
WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson wants to see snooker at the Olympics and Paralympics
Image credit: Getty Images
The 'big fight' to prove snooker has global appeal
For snooker, the challenge has never been one of legitimacy but of opportunity.
With a crowded Olympic programme and only a limited number of sports able to feature, the game continues to wait for its chance to demonstrate that its global growth, expanding participation and worldwide audience warrant a place on sport's biggest stage.
Ferguson himself, who was once ranked in the world's top 32, walked away from the sport, convinced it was in irreversible decline.
His departure led him into public service, where he became Mayor of Newark and Sherwood. Yet his return to the game as chairman of the WPBSA would coincide with one of the most transformative periods in the sport's modern history.
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2026/05/04/image-630bc748-5d98-4ebc-bbeb-b4dc70a74f69-85-2560-1440.jpeg)
'My parents are the true champions' - Wu praises mum and dad after Crucible final win
Video credit: TNT Sports
At the heart of that transformation was a landmark restructuring of the game's commercial model. A controlling 51 per cent stake in World Snooker Limited - the WPBSA's previously wholly owned commercial subsidiary - was sold to Matchroom Sport Limited, while the governing body retained a 26 per cent shareholding.
As a non-executive director of World Snooker Limited, Ferguson has continued to help shape the sport's commercial direction, overseeing a period of sustained growth that has delivered significant increases in prize money, playing opportunities and the game's international reach.
Looking back on the pivotal changes, Ferguson recalled the scepticism he encountered when pushing for snooker's global expansion.
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2026/05/05/image-0c51a6f7-3f8f-4f6f-a98a-a0c691e726d9-85-2560-1440.jpeg)
'We didn't think we would ever see that' - TNT Sports experts discuss their moments of the season
Video credit: TNT Sports
"I remember people saying to me, 'Jason, what on earth are you doing? Snooker is an English sport, it will never work," he continued.
"I told them, 'Trust me, this is a global sport.' This was a big fight for me to try and push people along, to say that we could do this.
"I failed the first time around, and I ended up resigning as chairman of the WPBSA and World Snooker, and I'd left because really it wasn't changing.
"So I walked away from it for a short time, but I'd gone into politics and become the Mayor of my town.
- How Higgins could smash huge 43-year record as China presents shot at history
- 'An absolute star' - Hendry ranks his all-time Crucible greats
- Has 147 lost its magic as key maximum change announced after record season?
"I was working on the regeneration of the coalfields, but then the phone rang, and it was Barry Hearn [founder and president of Matchroom Sport]. He asked me if it was true that I was the Mayor of my town.
"I told him I was, and he said to me that snooker was in trouble. It's declined again, and it's getting worse.
"He told me he would come in, but he said we'd need to put a team together. He told me he needed to get me back in, so they asked me to join the WPBSA board, and I joined and took over as chairman in 2010.
"I guess you follow your passion. Politics is something you can go back to at any time."
Add TNT Sports as a preferred source here to enjoy more content like this.
The streaming home for TNT Sports in the UK is HBO Max, where fans can enjoy a subscription that includes TNT Sports and entertainment in one destination.
Related Topics
Advertisement
Advertisement