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JOE PERRY has made the decision to retire from professional snooker, acknowledging that his “time is up” following an impressive 33-year journey in the sport.
Perry has announced that the World Snooker Championship in 2025, occurring next week, will serve as his final tournament on the main tour—assuming he qualifies.
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The 50-year-old secured a victory over Dylan Emery with a score of 10-6 at the English Institute of Sport on Thursday, moving on to the next round of the qualifying event.
Perry is striving to maintain his tour status, currently positioned just outside the critical top 64 cut-off.
He needs to achieve two more wins to qualify for the Crucible, which he considers the perfect venue for his last match.
The former world No. 8 stated: “I have officially retired. Now, I’m simply enjoying the game.
“It’s demanding to compete at my current level, but I’m giving it my all.
“I will still engage in snooker, as I intend to participate in the World Seniors Championship; however, my journey as a professional player concludes with this tournament.
“I feel okay; I experienced less anxiety today than in recent years while coming here. There was so much pressure in previous years.
“The atmosphere is different now. I understand that reaching nine frames could signify my last ever frame. But that’s the reality.”
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Perry, a two-time ranking title winner, was part of the Class of ’92 alongside Ronnie O’Sullivan, John Higgins and Mark Williams.
Since then, he has been on the professional tour and has reached the Masters final and the semi-finals of the World Snooker Championship.
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Perry further revealed that it took him a significant amount of time to arrive at the decision to retire, a contemplation that spanned the last 12 to 18 months.
The Gentleman remarked: “My goal is to reach the Crucible; I’m giving it everything I’ve got. It would be incredible to wrap up my career at the Crucible.
“The competition is intense these days; the players are remarkable. However, as long as I’m still in the game, there’s always hope.”
He previously indicated that the idea of retirement stemmed from feelings of “embarrassment” and a diminishing passion for snooker.
Perry, at 50 years old, triumphed over fellow Class of ’92 member Williams to win the 2015 Players Tour Championship Finals and took home the title at the 2022 Welsh Open.
His only appearance in a Triple Crown event final was in 2017, where he fell short against O’Sullivan with a score of 10-7 in the Masters final.
This year, he served as a commentator during the Welsh Open, finding it a more satisfying experience than playing competitively.
List of all-time Snooker World Champions
BELOW is a compilation of snooker World Champions by year.
This record considers the modern era, officially commencing from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport.
The inaugural World Championships occurred in 1927 and were halted during World War II (1941-45) and from 1958-63 due to a dispute within the sport.
Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis, and John Pulman (both 8) claimed the highest number of victories during this early period.
In the modern era, Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan each hold the record for the most titles, with seven wins apiece.
- 1969 – John Spencer
- 1970 – Ray Reardon
- 1971 – John Spencer
- 1972 – Alex Higgins
- 1973 – Ray Reardon (2)
- 1974 – Ray Reardon (3)
- 1975 – Ray Reardon (4)
- 1976 – Ray Reardon (5)
- 1977 – John Spencer (2)
- 1978 – Ray Reardon (6)
- 1979 – Terry Griffiths
- 1980 – Cliff Thorburn
- 1981 – Steve Davis
- 1982 – Alex Higgins (2)
- 1983 – Steve Davis (2)
- 1984 – Steve Davis (3)
- 1985 – Dennis Taylor
- 1986 – Joe Johnson
- 1987 – Steve Davis (4)
- 1988 – Steve Davis (5)
- 1989 – Steve Davis (6)
- 1990 – Stephen Hendry
- 1991 – John Parrott
- 1992 – Stephen Hendry (2)
- 1993 – Stephen Hendry (3)
- 1994 – Stephen Hendry (4)
- 1995 – Stephen Hendry (5)
- 1996 – Stephen Hendry (6)
- 1997 – Ken Doherty
- 1998 – John Higgins
- 1999 – Stephen Hendry (7)
- 2000 – Mark Williams
- 2001 – Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 2002 – Peter Ebdon
- 2003 – Mark Williams (2)
- 2004 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (2)
- 2005 – Shaun Murphy
- 2006 – Graeme Dott
- 2007 – John Higgins (2)
- 2008 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (3)
- 2009 – John Higgins (3)
- 2010 – Neil Robertson
- 2011 – John Higgins (4)
- 2012 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (4)
- 2013 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (5)
- 2014 – Mark Selby
- 2015 – Stuart Bingham
- 2016 – Mark Selby (2)
- 2017 – Mark Selby (3)
- 2018 – Mark Williams (3)
- 2019 – Judd Trump
- 2020 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (6)
- 2021 – Mark Selby (4)
- 2022 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (7)
- 2023 – Luca Brecel
- 2024 – Kyren Wilson
Most World Titles (modern era)
- 7 – Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 6 – Ray Reardon, Steve Davis
- 4 – John Higgins, Mark Selby
- 3 – John Spencer, Mark Williams
- 2 – Alex Higgins
