ITV Sport Production Appointed as the Producer for Prestigious Players Championship and Tour Championship on 5

5 Becomes First New Free-to-Air UK Partner for World Snooker Tour in Over 20 Years.

ITV Sport Production cues up first major off-network production deal.

ITV Sport Production has been selected by 5 to produce coverage of World Snooker Tour (WST) events, beginning with the Players Championship and Tour Championship in early 2026. As part of a new partnership with WST that marks the first free-to-air UK broadcast deal in over two decades, 5 will provide live coverage of both events and the British Open. Featuring the world’s top snooker players, these tournaments will be televised live on 5 for the first time in 2026.

The appointment is the first time ITV Sport Production has secured production on a broadcast not carried on an ITV platform since joining ITV Studios in 2024 and signifies the award-winning team’s expansion into working with other broadcasters.

This leverages ITV Sport Production’s reputation for producing award-winning, critically acclaimed live coverage of the world’s biggest sporting events, having won three BAFTA Television Awards for their coverage of Rugby Union and Horse Racing in recent years.  Recently, they secured four wins at the Broadcast Sport Awards 2025, including the Sports Production of the Year (Quadrennial) award for ITV’s UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 coverage and won the  Sports Production of the Year award for  their  Tour De France coverage  on ITV. 

The 2026 Players Championship will run from 17th to 22nd February at the Telford International Centre, featuring only the top 16 on the One-Year Ranking list. Kyren Wilson won the title in 2025, beating Judd Trump 10-9 in a dramatic final.

Then only the top 12 players on the same list graduate to the Tour Championship, running from 30th March to 5th April at the outstanding Manchester Central, recognised as one of the best venues on the tour. Last season, John Higgins lifted the trophy after beating Mark Selby 10-8 in the final, describing it as the best win of his career.

Katie Shanahan will present live coverage of Snooker on 5 and will be joined by seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry, a legend of the sport who is as forthright a pundit as he was dominant as a player. Other members of the team include former Masters winner Alan McManus, Steven Hallworth, David Hendon, and Abigail Davies.

ITV Sport Production is headed up by Mark Demuth, who as Managing Director, has been responsible for award-winning sports coverage including numerous major international and domestic tournaments and Katie Reed, Head of Production has overseen all major tournaments for ITV Sport since 2022.

Mark Demuth, Managing Director of ITV Sport Production said: “We are thrilled to partner with 5 on their snooker coverage, an exciting new venture bringing prestigious WST events live to mainstream TV. This marks a pivotal moment for ITV Sport Production, as we strategically expand beyond ITV network and leverage our production expertise to produce diverse sporting content for all broadcast platforms, starting with 5.”

Raphael Pendergast, Acting Head of Sport, 5 commented “We’re delighted to be working with ITV Sport Production to bring two of the most prestigious events in the snooker calendar to our viewers. The partnership brings together ITV Sport Production’s world-class expertise with our ambition to deliver high-quality, free-to-air sport to the widest and most accessible audience possible.”

WST Chief Marketing and Communications Officer Tom Rowell said: “We have worked with ITV Sport Production on many snooker events in recent years so we know they are a fantastic team and they will help deliver an outstanding product. We’re thrilled to be working with 5 for the first time on these key tournaments. It’s great news for fans that these events remain free-to-air and they can look forward to seeing exciting new ideas in the coverage.”

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Notes to editors

About ITV Studios

ITV Studios is a creator, producer and distributor of world-leading programmes that people can’t get enough of. We connect millions of people every day and shape and reflect the world they live in.

ITV Studios is home to some of the best creative minds, crafting around 7,500 hours of original programming across 60 production labels. Our global footprint spans 13 countries including the UK, US, Australia, France, Germany, The Nordics, Italy and the Netherlands and our global distribution business sells our catalogue of 95,000+ hours to broadcasters and platforms around the world. 

Zoo 55 has 170+ owned and operated channels in the social space delivering over 25bn views in 2024, as well as 27 FAST channels on 200+ channel feeds globally. It launched a new label, Zoo 55 dedicated to expanding its digital and gaming activity, in January 2025.

ITV Studios is part of ITV PLC, which includes the UK’s largest commercial broadcaster ITV and the ad-funded, free streaming home for ITV, ITVX.

About 5 

5 is the home of award-winning content from the UK’s third largest commercial PSB, a culmination of the creative transformation of Channel 5 over more than a decade. 5 is part of the Paramount Skydance Corporation.  

Through a mix of live TV channels and bingeable boxsets, the free-to-air service allows UK audiences to watch or stream the breadth of programming from the 5-branded portfolio, the dedicated preschool brand Milkshake!, and a wide selection from the wider Paramount family of brands, including BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV Entertainment Studios, Paramount+ and more.  

In keeping with its PSB remit, 5 tells the story of modern Britain by reflecting the lives of people across the UK, featuring well-known faces and fresh new talent. Its programme roster spans original UK drama, premium factual, true crime, science, news & current affairs and kids’ content, which continue to attract critical acclaim.  

Recent wins include ‘Channel of the Year’ at the 2025 Edinburgh TV Awards, BAFTA Television and RTS Awards for the documentary White Nanny, Black Child in 2024, along with a BAFTA nomination for Endurance Race to the Pole. Factual hit The Yorkshire Vet and the broadcaster’s series on air fryers also won RTS Yorkshire awards, while Michael Palin received the Radio Times Special Judges Award for his Channel 5 documentaries.