Liang Wenbo was one of 10 Chinese snooker players suspended in 2022 as part of the sport’s biggest corruption scandal, with two of them receiving lifetime bans
Liang Wenbo, once a promising snooker player, was permanently expelled from the sport after being convicted of multiple match-fixing offences. The 38-year-old former star was suspended in 2022 as part of the biggest corruption scandal in snooker history, which also involved nine other Chinese players.
Yan Bingtao, Chen Zifan, Zhang Jiankang, Bai Langning, Li Hang, Zhao Jianbo and Chang Bingyu were among the other players banned, including 2025 World Championship finalist Zhao Xintong. The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) issued suspensions ranging from 20 months to five years and four months to eight players.
But the harshest penalties were reserved for Liang and Li, who received lifetime bans from snooker.
Liang first burst onto the scene in 2008 when he made an unexpected run to the quarter-finals of the World Championships, where he lost 13-7 to Ronnie O’Sullivan. He won one ranking title during his career, which came at the English Open in 2016 when he defeated Judd Trump.
However, his career was abruptly ended due to allegations of fixing or involvement in fixing five snooker matches between July and September 2022, for which he was later found guilty.
He was also discovered to have encouraged fellow players to fix nine matches and violated additional rules by placing bets on matches.
Liang, who reached a career-best world ranking of No. 11 in 2016, was ranked No. 72 when his ban was enforced. It was later revealed that he had threatened another player and failed to cooperate with the ranking body’s investigation, while also deleting messages from his phone, reports the Express.
“This has been a very complex case,” said WPBSA chairman Jason Ferguson. “It has been heartbreaking to see some young talented players fall foul of the WPBSA conduct regulations through pressure exerted by two senior players.
“This behaviour has been recognised as wholly unacceptable by the imposition of two lifetime bans from participating in recognised snooker in any way. Those who try to corrupt sport are constantly trying to find new ways to avoid our monitoring processes and this outcome must be taken as a lesson to those who think they can avoid detection.
“If any player is involved in fixing a snooker match, they will be caught and will face severe penalties. I am pleased that the commission found that they did not see from the present case ‘any evidence of a wider culture of wrongdoing in snooker’.
“The WPBSA will continue its strong stance against those who attempt to manipulate sport and today’s outcome sends out a clear message that match fixing will not be tolerated in snooker.”
Zhao, who is currently ahead of Mark Williams in the Crucible finale, was able to make a comeback to snooker in September 2024 after serving a 20-month sentence. Although the Chinese star wasn’t found guilty of directly fixing a match, he admitted to being involved in another player’s match-fixing while placing personal bets on games.
He was also slapped with a £7,500 fine for costs. Zhao bagged his first ranking title and first Triple Crown title at the 2021 UK Championship when he beat Luca Brecel 10-5 in the final. His second victory came at the 2022 German Masters when he defeated fellow Chinese player Yan Bingtao.
