In the summer of 1989, the
World Pool-Billiard Association (now the World Pool Association or WPA) began plans for a world championship tournament. They created a provisional Board to oversee the creation of a tournament. The event was one of the first time the world's top
nine-ball players met in a competition. The inaugural WPA World Nine-ball Championship was held in
Bergheim, Germany. A men's event contested between 32 players was won by
Earl Strickland and a 16-player women's event won by
Robin Bell. A junior's event was first played in 1992, won by
Hsia Hui-kai and a wheelchair event was created in 1999 first won by
Bob Calderon. The event was organised solely by the WPA from this inauguration through 1999. In July 1999,
Matchroom Sport attempted to get involved with the organisation of the event, but their bid failed. The 1999 event was played in
Alicante,
Spain, and won by
Nick Varner. Broadcast on
ESPN, it was the first pro nine-ball championship to be televised. With the World Professional Pool Championship being successful, the WPA and Matchroom agreed to merge their two tournaments, with both 1999 events being considered as official world championships. Matchroom continued to promote and organise the event until 2007 when it was not held after they were unable to fund it due to the
2008 financial crisis. The event stayed in Wales until
2003. The tournament moved to the Philippines in
2006 and
2007. the event ran from November 3–11, and
Daryl Peach of the
England was the victor. After a two-year hiatus, the tournament returned being organised by the WPA as the
2010 WPA World Nine-ball Championship in
Doha,
Qatar. The event was then held annually in Doha through 2019. Prize money had reduced, with the winner's prize being $36,000, only rising to $40,000 by
2018. After not being contested in 2020 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic, the championship resumed in 2021 in
Milton Keynes, England. The 2022 edition was April 6–10 in Milton Keynes. ==Winners==