Ronnie O'Sullivan was the defending champion, having defeated Ding Junhui 10‍–‍7 in the final of the 2023 event, but he lost 4‍–‍6 to qualifier Barry Hawkins in the first round.

Judd Trump won the tournament, defeating Hawkins 10‍–‍8 in the final to secure his second UK Championship title, following his previous win at the 2011 event.

[15][7] The defending champion was Ronnie O'Sullivan, who won his record‑extending eighth UK Championship title in 2023, defeating China's Ding Junhui 10‍‍–‍7 in the final.

[18][19] The 2021 winner Zhao Xintong, whose 20‑month ban for match‑fixing offences expired on 1 September 2024, was among the amateur players invited as a WPBSA qualifier after he won Q Tour Event 3 in October 2024.

[20][21] The qualifying matches were broadcast by Discovery+ in Europe (including the United Kingdom and Ireland); starting from 18 November, they were additionally available worldwide (except for China) on World Snooker Tour's Facebook and YouTube channels, with live commentary on one table.

Round 4 of qualifying, called "Judgement Day", featured live commentary on all four tables, with roving coverage.

[22] The World Snooker Tour reported that the qualifiers had received almost three million views on Facebook and YouTube combined, almost double the previous year's figures.

[24] The breakdown of prize money for the event is shown below:[25][26] In the first qualifying round, reigning World Women's Champion Bai Yulu recovered from 1‍–‍3 down to defeat Farakh Ajaib 6‍–‍4, making four breaks over 50.

Liam Davies missed the final pink of an attempted maximum break in the fourth frame of his 6‍–‍3 win over Ahmed Aly Elsayed.

By beating Dean Young 6‍–‍3, Mohamed Shehab recorded his first win since regaining professional status in 2024, following a 17‑year absence from the tour.

Jimmy White, aged 62, defeated amateur player Paul Deaville 6‍–‍2, and reigning African champion Hatem Yassen completed a whitewash over Mink Nutcharut.

[28][15] In the second qualifying round, Bai defeated Jamie Jones 6‍–‍4, becoming the first woman since Kelly Fisher in 1999 to win back‑to‑back matches at a professional ranking event.

The 1992 winner White lost 4‍–‍6 to Ross Muir, while 2003 champion Matthew Stevens defeated Thailand's Manasawin Phetmalaikul 6‍–‍4.

Hong Kong's Marco Fu beat Iranian professional Amir Sarkhosh 6‍–‍1 while Antoni Kowalski defeated Anthony Hamilton 6‍–‍3.

"[33] After defeating Oliver Lines 6‍–‍5, three‑time UK Champion Neil Robertson commented: "My game is there, in a way it was good to have to dig deep tonight in a match where things were not going my way.

"[34] Zhou Yuelong won six consecutive frames to defeat Fu 6‍–‍3, and David Lilley beat Thepchaiya Un‑Nooh by the same score.

In the fourth and final qualifying round, branded as "Judgement Day", Maguire faced Elliot Slessor.

"[38] David Gilbert beat Leclercq 6‍–‍1, commenting afterwards: "I played terrible but kept nicking frames.... Hopefully York will rekindle something for me."

Murphy, who had recently started working with retired professional Peter Ebdon as a coach and mentor, eventually won the match in a deciding frame.

"[46] Playing with a new cue, qualifier David Gilbert made six half‑century breaks as he defeated the 16th seed Xiao Guodong 6‍–‍4, commenting afterward: "It wasn't great.

"[48] The 12th seed Ali Carter defeated qualifier Ryan Day by the same score to reach the last 16 of the tournament for the first time since the 2012 event, at which he had been a semi‑finalist.

However, Lisowski won six of the last seven frames, making breaks of 55, 63, 100, 70, and 61, to clinch the match 6‍–‍4 and secure his first win over Selby in four years.

"[51] Qualifier Michael Holt defeated the tenth seed Gary Wilson 6‍–‍1 to reach the last 16 of the tournament for the first time since the 1999 event, at which he had been a quarter‑finalist.

[55] John Higgins, a three‑time winner and the 14th seed, made breaks including 110, 92, 72, and 64 as he whitewashed qualifier He Guoqiang in a match that lasted only an hour and fifty minutes.

"[55] Despite losing the first two frames against qualifier Lei Peifan, the 11th seed Zhang Anda won six of the last seven to secure a 6‍–‍3 victory.

[60] Hawkins's second‑round victory meant that Neil Robertson did not qualify automatically for the 2025 Masters,[60] although he was subsequently invited to the tournament following O'Sullivan's withdrawal.

[63][59] After reaching the quarter‑final stage of the tournament for the fourth time in his career, Lisowksi said: "I didn't play as well as the other day but I was kind of expecting that.

Wilson led 3–1 at the mid-session interval, having made breaks of 85 and 108 and won the fourth frame after Wakelin missed the last black off its spot.

Murphy made breaks of 108 and 92 to draw level at 2‍–‍2 at the mid‑session interval, but Hawkins then won four consecutive frames for a 6‍–‍2 victory, recording 162 points without reply to win the last two.

He secured four foul points from one snooker but was unable to obtain a second, and Trump eventually potted the brown, blue, and pink for a 10‍–‍8 victory.