Latest news with #Brecel
The Irish Sun
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Snooker maverick Luca Brecel pulls out of second major event as he hangs out with girlfriend and wears bizarre mask
LUCA BRECEL has put in another no-show just days after skipping qualifying for the Wuhan Open. The Advertisement 3 Luca Brecel missed another qualifying round on Wednesday Credit: Alamy 3 The 30-year-old has been posting updates with new girlfriend Shawney Demuyter Credit: Instagram @ 3 Brecel rocked a number of costumes in updates posted on Tuesday Credit: Instagram Brecel failed to show in the East Midlands for his match with Alexander Ursenbacher. It comes just days after he A brief statement from the World Snooker Tour read: "Luca Brecel has withdrawn from this week's British Open qualifiers and been replaced in the draw by Ashley Carty. "Brecel was due to face Alexander Ursenbacher on Wednesday afternoon but has decided to pull out. Advertisement READ MORE ON SNOOKER "Carty is the highest available player from the Q School top-up list." Brecel is currently enjoying a summer holiday with new flame Shawney Demuyter. He appeared to be out of the country on Sunday as he On Tuesday, the day before his scheduled match with Ursenbacher, Brecel uploaded a snap of himself wearing a bizarre mask on Instagram. Advertisement Most read in Snooker Warning BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK He followed it with snaps of him wearing a pink hat and a giant black wig. He captioned the picture: "Bad hair day." BBC commentator spots moment Luca Brecel apologises to Judd Trump during epic World Snooker Championship quarter-final The Belgian Bullet has Advertisement Legendary snooker star Steven Hendry said of Brecel: "He's fallen off a cliff. What a great player, though. "It's very frustrating for me to watch someone who is so talented [not perform]. "He's still in his 20s, and could play still for the next 10, 15 years, win so many tournaments, earn so much money... [but he] doesn't seem interested." Brecel had been set to play in next month's Championship League. Advertisement But he has already withdrawn from that event. Brecel has previously The maverick told : "I just don't really think a lot about winning tournaments and stuff like that. I just like playing the game. "I'm more of a Ronaldinho type of player in snooker, so it's all about just entertaining and fun! Advertisement "And also having a nice life around it, that's more important to me! So yeah, no pressure."
Metro
25-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
Luca Brecel pulls out of British Open in bizarre start to his snooker season
Luca Brecel has pulled out of British Open qualifying on the day he was due to play after failing to show up for his Wuhan Open qualifier on Sunday. The 30-year-old gave no warning on Sunday ahead of his scheduled contest with Haris Tahir, with his opponent eventually being handed a 5-0 win. On Wednesday he was due to be in Leicester again for British Open qualifying against Alexander Ursenbacher, but pulled out on the day, allowing amateur player Ashley Carty to take his place in the draw. A brief statement from World Snooker Tour on Wednesday afternoon read: 'Luca Brecel has withdrawn from this week's British Open qualifiers and been replaced in the draw by Ashley Carty. 'Brecel was due to face Alexander Ursenbacher on Wednesday afternoon but has decided to pull out. Carty is the highest available player from the Q School top-up list.' Whether he will be punished by the snooker hierarchy is yet to be confirmed, but he does face the possibility of a fine unless he gives an appropriate reason for his absence. Brecel has not given a reason for not playing in the two events at the Mattioli Arena, he has been busy on social media, seemingly enjoying himself. On Sunday, when he was due to play Tahir, he posted picture on Instagram with his reported new girlfriend Shawney Demuyter and another of pizzas with two glasses of wine. By Tuesday the Bullet was posting pictures wearing a bizarre mask and an eye-catching hat. Wednesday saw the former world champ sporting a wig, shortly before he was due to be playing Ursenbacher. The Belgian Bullet finished last season off impressively as he looked great on a run to the quarter-finals of the World Championship, where he was beaten by Judd Trump in an excellent contest. They were encouraging signs for the man who had won the 2023 World Championship but had a very quiet time after that, skipping a number of tournaments and struggling for results in the ones he played in. He has slipped down to number 39 in the world rankings and failing to play in either the Wuhan Open or British Open puts him at risk of falling further down in the rankings in the weeks to come. His next scheduled matches are on July 17 in the Championship League, but whether he plays in those or not is yet to be seen. More Trending The Saudi Arabia Masters in Jeddah in August would be the next event for the Bullet after that. Asked about his fall outside of the top 16 at the World Championship in April, Brecel said he was actually looking forward to qualifiers. 'There's also a good side, less travelling maybe, less extra tournaments so for me it's maybe better,' he said of no longer being in the top 16. 'I enjoy the qualifiers to be honest, I don't need to be on the TV table, I like being on the outside table as well. For me it's all about playing snooker.' MORE: Three major World Snooker Tour events move to new TV channel MORE: 10 storylines of the new snooker season as the 2025-26 campaign begins MORE: Anthony Hamilton names snooker star's transformation as 'most impressive thing I've seen'
Wales Online
24-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Snooker world champion who lost millions fails to show up for match at start of new season
Snooker world champion who lost millions fails to show up for match at start of new season The new snooker season has just started, but one significant star has began it by failing to show up for his match at the Wuhan Open qualifiers Luca Brecel's antics have cost him again (Image: George Wood, Getty Images ) Former snooker millionaire Luca Brecel failed to show up for his Wuhan Open qualifier clash against Haris Tahir. Brecel, who won the World Snooker Championship in 2023, was due to play the Pakistani star in Leicester. However, the Belgian never appeared and Tahir was given a 5-0 walkover and a spot in the main competition at the last-64 stage. The match was scheduled for 2.30pm and even had a live commentary of proceedings on the World Snooker Tour's website. Fans quickly clocked that Tahir was constantly being awarded frame after frame, as per tournament rules for late arrivals. He was eventually awarded the win and put through to the next round at the Wuhan Open, which has a first prize of £140,000. Brecel uploaded a series of pictures to his Instagram story of himself and new partner Shawney Demuyter drinking wine and eating pizza in his homeland of Belgium on Sunday. It was an unusual start to the new season for Brecel, who admitted to losing his millionaire status by spending his 2023 winnings on supercars and other lavish things. Brecel prefers to commute between his home country and tournament locations and has previously had close calls with match timings before. During the World Championship in April, he cut it fine by arriving at the Crucible just hours before his second-round match against Ding Junhui, because he opted to fly into the UK on a private jet. Article continues below Brecel also nearly missed his first-round match at the Scottish Open a few years ago. Last season, Hammad Miah was given a 5-0 walkover during Xi'an Grand Prix qualifying when Brecel didn't show up in Leicester. Luca Brecel has endured a tough couple of years (Image: Getty ) The 30-year-old was subsequently ousted from the tournament without any prize money or ranking points. He has witnessed a significant downturn in form since clinching the World Championship title two years ago. Brecel became the first player from mainland Europe to become a world champion when he stunned Mark Selby at the Crucible with an 18-15 triumph. However, the former World No. 2 has since plummeted to 39th in the global rankings and shed the £500,000 in ranking points he secured with his 2023 triumph. Earlier this year, Brecel expressed his disinterest in chasing another world championship, stating he is prioritising entertaining crowds over titles. He said: "I've not really thought about the possibility of winning a second world title. I'm not that interested in it. If it happens it happens, but if it doesn't, then it's all good. I just don't really think a lot about winning tournaments and stuff like that. Brecel's opponent was handed a walkover (Image: Getty ) Article continues below "I just like playing the game. I'm more of a Ronaldinho type of player in snooker. It's all about just entertaining and [having] fun. Also having a nice life around it, that's more important to me! So yeah, no pressure." Not long after winning the world title, Brecel revealed his lavish spending habits saw him lose his millionaire status. He burned through his chequebook by spending hundreds of thousands on a Ferrari 488, BMW M4, Range Rover Sport and even a Porsche Taycan for his partner at the time, Laura Vanoverberghe.
The Irish Sun
22-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Ex-World Snooker Champ maverick Luca Brecel fails to show up for start of season after going public with new girlfriend
LUCA BRECEL did not bother to turn up for the first day of the new snooker season and will miss out on a mega-money Chinese takeaway. The Belgian Bullet has fallen a long way since becoming 3 Luca Brecel has missed the first day of the new season Credit: Getty 3 Brecel was a no-show in Leicester - and appeared to be out of the country with his new flame Shawney Demuyter Credit: Instagram 3 The 2023 world champion swapped the baize for pizza Credit: Instagram The 2025-26 baize campaign began on Sunday with Wuhan Open qualifying and Brecel, 30, was due to play Pakistani Haris Tahir. It was scheduled to take place at 2.30pm at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester. Yet Brecel, who has fallen to 39th on the WST list, appears not to have been in the country. So, a 5-0 walkover was awarded to his opponent, who secured a spot in the main draw in the Far East. READ MORE ON SNOOKER On Saturday, he posted images of himself with his reported new girlfriend Shawney Demuyter and hours before his match he uploaded a photo of pizzas and two wine glasses. If anything, it suggested he was not necessarily in the mood for break-building. It is another sorry situation for a potting maverick who lives by his own rules. His absence means he will not take part in the Wuhan Open, which takes place in the last week of August and has a top prize of about £140,000. Most read in Snooker BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK Former world champions During the World Championship, Brecel flew to Sheffield, from Holland via East Midlands Airport, on the day of his second-round clash with Ding Junhui. BBC commentator spots moment Luca Brecel apologises to Judd Trump during epic World Snooker Championship quarter-final That is because he did not want to stay the night before in a hotel in South Yorkshire. Amazingly, he dominated the opening session 7-1 against Ding even though he had only arrived in the UK a few hours earlier.
The Sun
22-06-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Ex-World Snooker Champ maverick Luca Brecel fails to show up for start of season after going public with new girlfriend
LUCA BRECEL did not bother to turn up for the first day of the new snooker season and will miss out on a mega-money Chinese takeaway. The Belgian Bullet has fallen a long way since becoming champion of the world in thrilling style in May 2023. 3 3 3 The 2025-26 baize campaign began on Sunday with Wuhan Open qualifying and Brecel, 30, was due to play Pakistani Haris Tahir. It was scheduled to take place at 2.30pm at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester. Yet Brecel, who has fallen to 39th on the WST list, appears not to have been in the country. So, a 5-0 walkover was awarded to his opponent, who secured a spot in the main draw in the Far East. On Saturday, he posted images of himself with his reported new girlfriend and hours before his match he uploaded a photo of pizzas and two wine glasses. If anything, it suggested he was not necessarily in the mood for break-building. It is another sorry situation for a potting maverick who lives by his own rules. His absence means he will not take part in the Wuhan Open, which takes place in the last week of August and has a top prize of about £140,000. Former world champions Mark Williams, Shaun Murphy and John Higgins all made the effort to play over the weekend despite qualifying being behind closed doors. During the World Championship, Brecel flew to Sheffield, from Holland via East Midlands Airport, on the day of his second-round clash with Ding Junhui. That is because he did not want to stay the night before in a hotel in South Yorkshire. Amazingly, he dominated the opening session 7-1 against Ding even though he had only arrived in the UK a few hours earlier.
