Luca Brecel slams ‘lazy’ young British snooker stars – ‘All about social media and money’

For the first time since 16 seeded players were introduced in 1980, no British players under the age of 30 were seeded for the World Cup and Luca Brecel has beaten the new generation of British snooker players

Luca Brecel has delivered a scathing assessment of the new generation of British snooker players, branding them “lazy” and claiming they only care about “social media and money”.

Brecel’s comments come after no UK players under the age of 30 were seeded for the World Championship for the first time since the emergence of 16 seeds in 1980. And the Belgian believes this is a sign for the future, explaining that it will be “difficult for more players like [John] Higgins and [Mark] Williams to the breakthrough”.

Brecel, 27, is one of six foreign players under the age of 30 taking part in the tournament, while the other five players are all from China. The highest ranked British player under 30 is Sam Craigie, ranked number 42 in the world.

Speaking to the PA news agency, Brecel said: “For the new generation [of British players] It’s all about social media and money. Nowadays they all seem so lazy and it will be difficult to like more players [John] Higgins and [Mark] Williams to break through.”

He also dismissed criticism of the 128-draw system, insisting players simply “have to accept that it’s going to take a long time to be good at something”. He added: “I’ve heard a lot of players complain about the 128 [draws] but I think you just gotta move on.

“You have to accept that it will take a long time to be good at something. Impatience is the keyword.”

Brecel meets Thailand’s Noppon Saengkham in the first round and is confident he will progress in the Crucible.

He has had an impressive season so far, having lost to Zhao Xintong in the British Championship final and then won the Scottish Open by beating John Higgins in the final.

“I got my issues out of the way on and off the table and had a different season this year,” he said. “I feel like this year I have my best chance to go far.”