Robertson fumes as players balk at sponsor row

AUSTRALIAN Neil Robertson has added his voice to the row between snooker’s top stars and the BBC over sponsorship logos.

Most of the world’s top 32 players have signed a petition, started by six-time world champion Steve Davis, demanding their lucrative waistcoat rights are reinstated.

Players used to be allowed to wear two logos until the game’s governing body limited each player to just one during events televised by the BBC, with the tournament title sponsor taking the other.

Also, when a deal was agreed with 888.com, which sponsors the World Championship, players lost the right to wear any rival gaming logo.

Speaking after his 10-4 first round victory over Nigel Bond at the Crucible, Robertson said: “It’s ridiculous. Darts players can wear four logos and we can only wear one. Formula One cars have 30 or 40 logos on them.

“It’s ridiculous and it costs us lots of money. We don’t have many tournaments. It helps our income out.”

The row comes on the back of comments from an unnamed player in a Sunday newspaper last week in which he complained about the way the sport is being run.

World Snooker placed a statement on their website highlighting increases in prize money and their efforts to secure new tournaments, and ended by asking: “Would it not be more beneficial to the membership if leading players were to help their Association by making more supportive statements in the media?”