Snooker fans worldwide may have heard Brandon Parker's name mentioned throughout the German Masters. The tournament's trophy was renamed in 2021, immortalising Parker, who had passed away following a battle with kidney cancer a year earlier. The former World Snooker Tour director made a number of incredible contributions to the sport during his 20-year career, working as an events promoter and a player-manager to the likes of Quinten Hann, Paul Hunter and Shaun Murphy.

Parker took the German Masters to its long-standing home of the Berlin Tempodrom in 2011 for the first time, and former WST Chairman Barry Hearn and WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson noted in the wake of his passing how it was a no-brainer to rename the title of the tournament in his honour. In a joint statement in 2021, the pair said in a joint statement: "To name the German Masters trophy after Brandon is a very fitting tribute because this event was such an important part of his life. He dedicated so much energy and enthusiasm towards building this into one of the greatest events on the circuit.

"As our European Operations Director, Brandon did so much to develop snooker across the continent. Driven by Eurosport’s coverage, the expansion of snooker into this region has been an incredible success story over the past decade and Brandon played an integral role.". Murphy also took to social media after hearing the news of his former manager's passing, sharing a heartfelt post to X alongside a snap of Parker. He wrote: "As we deal with grief, remember that there are no rules.

"Losing someone is difficult. Beyond terrible. As I write this, with tears streaming down my face I feel completely heartbroken Brandon won't be there for the German Masters. His event. His legacy. Love you mate.". Parker was working as a technical sales executive in the chemical industry when he decided to team up with the Wheels In Motion management team in the 1990s. An avid snooker player himself as the champion of his local Conservative Club, Parker then made the decision to quit his sales job to pursue it full-time.

He broke into the world of promotion in the 2000s, setting up a German event now known as the Paul Hunter Classic - in tribute to the player whom Parker worked with before he passed of cancer in 2007. He was brought on as one of Hearn's first appointments when Matchroom Sport took over World Snooker in 2010 - deployed as a European Operations Director. During his time with World Snooker, Parker was in charge of promoting a number of new events across the European circuit, including the German Masters as snooker fans know it in 2025. Parker was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2018, undergoing surgery and several rounds of treatment for the disease.