John Higgins’ ban from snooker, BBC outrage, retirement stance and net worth

is one of snooker’s most popular characters, having established himself among the greats of the game since turning professional in 1992. He has won a total of 31 ranking titles, putting him behind only and on the all-time leaderboard.

A four-time world champion, Higgins first entered the world’s top 16 in 1995 and remained there continuously for over 29 years until last September. He has since recovered to 13th and will be hoping to climb even higher by winning more titles, starting with the World Open where he faces Joe O’Connor in this weekend’s final.

Earlier in his career, Higgins was involved in controversy when he picked up a six-month ban after a tabloid report sparked a media storm. He has also clashed with the in the past, hitting out at the broadcaster after they got his nationality wrong in an embarrassing mishap.

Express Sport looks back at those moments, as well as Higgins’ stance on retirement and his impressive net worth…

Ban from snooker

In 2010, Higgins was banned from playing after the News of the World alleged that he had agreed to lose specific frames in future matches for money. He was cleared after an independent tribunal pinned the blame on his former business partner, Pat Mooney, who received a lifetime ban despite escaping match-fixing charges on a technicality.

Higgins was acquitted of agreeing to accept a bribe and agreeing to engage in corrupt or fraudulent conduct. He was, however, found guilty of failing to report an illegal approach and intentionally giving the impression that he was prepared to act in breach of betting rules.

It resulted in the Scot receiving a six-month ban in addition to a £75,000 fine, plus another £10,000 in costs. Pledging to return as a ‘stronger person’, he described the ordeal as ‘traumatic’ and said: “It has been made all the more hurtful by the knowledge that I never have, and never would, fix a snooker match.”

Outrage with the BBC

Higgins, a proud Scotsman, was left furious with the when they mistakenly labelled him as English during a World Snooker Championship match in 2022. He issued a public rebuke after seeing the St George’s Cross next to his name ahead of his opening fixture against Thepchaiya Un-Nooh.

After seeing that the had used the wrong flag, Higgins fumed: “England? Am I allowed to swear? God, they better get that changed pronto. That’s poor isn’t it? That’s really poor from the . Very poor.”

The mistake was corrected the following day, with the Scottish flag appearing on the broadcast as Higgins went on to secure a 10-7 victory and reach the second round.

Stance on retirement

Higgins will celebrate his 50th birthday later this year but does not seem to be planning on retiring any time soon. After losing to Kyren Wilson at last year’s World Snooker Championship, he made it clear that he was not thinking about stepping away from the table.

“I’m committing to playing snooker now and I’m committing to trying to get back here,” . “I don’t want that to be my final match at the Crucible, so I’ll still be playing snooker. I think it [retirement] is [a long time away].

“There can be other things happening off the table that can be clouding your decisions, but right now it’s a long way away. The sport will have to retire me before I retire myself, simple as that.”

Impressive net worth

Although he is nowhere near as rich as some of his biggest rivals, Higgins still boasts an impressive fortune that puts the majority of snooker players to shame.

Three months ago, that Higgins had an estimated net worth of £8.8million, making him the eighth-richest player of all time. The website claims that he is ahead of Mark Williams, who is said to be worth around £7.1m.

Retired legend Steve Davis sits at the very top of the list with an estimated net worth of £26.5m, while Hendry is the runner-up at £25.5m. O’Sullivan, meanwhile, finds himself in sixth with a reported net worth of £11.2m.