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- What’s at stake and quick facts
- First-round draw: full bracket by quarter (128-player field)
- Projected next rounds — simplified bracket lines
- Daily schedule: when to watch the opening rounds
- Day 1 — Thurs., Dec. 11 (evening)
- Day 2 — Fri., Dec. 12 (afternoon & evening)
- Day 3 — Sat., Dec. 13 (afternoon & evening)
- Day 4 — Sun., Dec. 14 (afternoon & evening)
- Day 5 — Mon., Dec. 15 (afternoon & evening)
- Day 6 — Tue., Dec. 16 (afternoon & evening)
- Day 7 — Wed., Dec. 17 (evening)
- Day 8 — Thurs., Dec. 18 (afternoon & evening)
- Day 9 — Fri., Dec. 19 (afternoon & evening)
- Key dates for the later rounds
- Second- and third-round fixtures to note
- Prize money breakdown
- Tournament format and rules fans should know
- Additional reading and features about PDC darts
The festive season at Alexandra Palace returns with the 2026 PDC World Darts Championship, a three-week spectacle where 128 players chase the Sid Waddell Trophy. Expect drama, big names and surprise runs as the field battles through a packed schedule from December into early January.
What’s at stake and quick facts
- Venue: Alexandra Palace, London.
- Dates: December 11 – January 3, with breaks for the holidays.
- Field: 128 players — a larger field than 2025.
- Top prize: £1,000,000 from a total fund of £5,000,000.
- Trophy: The Sid Waddell Trophy.
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First-round draw: full bracket by quarter (128-player field)
Quarter 1 — seeds and opening ties
- (1) Luke Littler vs. Darius Labanauskas
- Mario Vandenbogaerde vs. David Davies
- (32) Joe Cullen vs. Bradley Brooks
- Mensur Suljovic vs. David Cameron
- (16) Damon Heta vs. Steve Lennon
- Raymond van Barneveld vs. Stefan Bellmont
- (17) Rob Cross vs. Cor Dekker
- Ian White vs. Mervyn King
- (8) Chris Dobey vs. Xiaochen Zong
- Andrew Gilding vs. Cam Crabtree
- (25) Luke Woodhouse vs. Boris Krcmar
- Martin Lukeman vs. Max Hopp
- (9) Gerwyn Price vs. Adam Gawlas
- Lukas Wenig vs. Wesley Plaisier
- (24) Ryan Joyce vs. Owen Bates
- Krzysztof Ratajski vs. Alexis Toylo
Quarter 2 — mid-section matchups
- (4) Stephen Bunting vs. Sebastian Bialecki
- Richard Veenstra vs. Nitin Kumar
- (29) Dirk van Duijvenbode vs. Andy Baetens
- James Hurrell vs. Stowe Buntz
- (13) Martin Schindler vs. Stephen Burton
- Keane Barry vs. Tim Pusey
- (20) Ryan Searle vs. Chris Landman
- Brendan Dolan vs. Tavis Dudeney
- (5) Jonny Clayton vs. Adam Lipscombe
- Dom Taylor vs. Oskar Lukasiak
- (28) Michael Smith vs. Lisa Ashton
- Niels Zonneveld vs. Haupai Puha
- (12) Ross Smith vs. Andreas Harrysson
- Thibault Tricole vs. Motomu Sakai
- (21) Dave Chisnall vs. Fallon Sherrock
- Ricardo Pietreczko vs. Jose de Sousa
Quarter 3 — contenders and tests
- (2) Luke Humphries vs. Ted Evetts
- Jeffrey de Graaf vs. Paul Lim
- (31) Wessel Nijman vs. Karel Sedlacek
- Gabriel Clemens vs. Alex Spellman
- (15) Nathan Aspinall vs. Lourence Ilagan
- Mickey Mansell vs. Leonard Gates
- (18) Mike De Decker vs. David Munyua
- Kevin Doets vs. Matthew Dennant
- (7) James Wade vs. Ryusei Azemoto
- Ricky Evans vs. Man Lok Leung
- (26) Cameron Menzies vs. Charlie Manby
- Matt Campbell vs. Adam Sevada
- (10) Gian van Veen vs. Cristo Reyes
- Alan Soutar vs. Teemu Harju
- (23) Dimitri Van den Bergh vs. Darren Beveridge
- Madars Razma vs. Jamai van den Herik
Quarter 4 — top names and wildcards
- (3) Michael van Gerwen vs. Mitsuhiko Tatsunami
- William O’Connor vs. Krzysztof Kciuk
- (30) Peter Wright vs. Noa-Lynn van Leuven
- Kim Huybrechts vs. Arno Merk
- (14) Gary Anderson vs. Adam Hunt
- Connor Scutt vs. Simon Whitlock
- (19) Jermaine Wattimena vs. Dominik Grullich
- Scott Williams vs. Paolo Nebrida
- (6) Danny Noppert vs. Jurjen van der Velde
- Nick Kenny vs. Justin Hood
- (27) Ritchie Edhouse vs. Jonny Tata
- Ryan Meikle vs. Jesus Salate
- (11) Josh Rock vs. Gemma Hayter
- Niko Springer vs. Joe Comito
- (22) Daryl Gurney vs. Beau Greaves
- Callan Rydz vs. Patrik Kovacs
Projected next rounds — simplified bracket lines
Second round matchups by quarter
- Quarter 1: Littler vs. Davies; Cullen vs. Suljovic; Heta vs. Bellmont; Cross vs. White; Dobey vs. Gilding; Woodhouse vs. Hopp; Price vs. Plaisier; Joyce vs. Ratajski.
- Quarter 2: Bunting vs. Kumar; van Duijvenbode vs. Hurrell; Schindler vs. Barry; Searle vs. Dolan; Clayton vs. Taylor; M. Smith vs. Zonneveld; Harrysson vs. Sakai; Chisnall vs. Pietreczko.
- Quarter 3: Humphries vs. Lim; Nijman vs. Clemens; Aspinall vs. Gates; Munyua vs. Doets; Wade vs. Evans; Manby vs. Sevada; van Veen vs. Soutar; Beveridge vs. Razma.
- Quarter 4: van Gerwen vs. O’Connor; Wright vs. Merk; Anderson vs. Scutt; Wattimena vs. Williams; Noppert vs. Hood; Tata vs. Meikle; Rock vs. Comito; Gurney vs. Rydz.
Third and fourth round pathways
- Third round examples: Littler vs. Suljovic; Heta vs. Cross; Gilding vs. Woodhouse; Plaisier vs. Ratajski.
- Third round, other quarters: Bunting vs. Hurrell; Schindler vs. Searle; Clayton vs. Zonneveld; Harrysson vs. Pietreczko, etc.
- Fourth round pairs will pit winners of those third-round ties against one another to produce the quarterfinalists.
Daily schedule: when to watch the opening rounds
The first round runs December 11–19. Sessions are split between afternoons and evenings. Times below are local.
Day 1 — Thurs., Dec. 11 (evening)
- 7:00 p.m. — Kim Huybrechts vs. Arno Merk
- 8:00 p.m. — Michael Smith vs. Lisa Ashton
- 9:00 p.m. — Luke Littler vs. Darius Labanauskas
- 10:00 p.m. — Madars Razma vs. Jamai Van Den Herik
Day 2 — Fri., Dec. 12 (afternoon & evening)
- 12:30 p.m. — Niels Zonneveld vs. Haupai Puha
- 1:30 p.m. — Ian White vs. Mervyn King
- 2:30 p.m. — Ryan Searle vs. Chris Landman
- 3:30 p.m. — Rob Cross vs. Cor Dekker
- 7:00 p.m. — Ross Smith vs. Andreas Harrysson
- 8:00 p.m. — Ricky Evans vs. Man Lok Leung
- 9:00 p.m. — Gian van Veen vs. Cristo Reyes
- 10:00 p.m. — Damon Heta vs. Steve Lennon
Day 3 — Sat., Dec. 13 (afternoon & evening)
- 12:30 p.m. — Mario Vandenbogaerde vs. David Davies
- 1:30 p.m. — Andrew Gilding vs. Cam Crabtree
- 2:30 p.m. — Luke Woodhouse vs. Boris Krcmar
- 3:30 p.m. — Gary Anderson vs. Adam Hunt
- 7:00 p.m. — Jeffrey De Graaf vs. Paul Lim
- 8:00 p.m. — Wessel Nijman vs. Karel Sedlacek
- 9:00 p.m. — Luke Humphries vs. Ted Evetts
- 10:00 p.m. — Gabriel Clemens vs. Alex Spellman
Day 4 — Sun., Dec. 14 (afternoon & evening)
- 12:30 p.m. — Ritchie Edhouse vs. Jonny Tata
- 1:30 p.m. — Dom Taylor vs. Oskar Lukasiak
- 2:30 p.m. — Richard Veenstra vs. Nitin Kumar
- 3:30 p.m. — Joe Cullen vs. Bradley Brooks
- 7:00 p.m. — Lukas Wenig vs. Wesley Plaisier
- 8:00 p.m. — Dimitri van den Bergh vs. Darren Beveridge
- 9:00 p.m. — Stephen Bunting vs. Sebastian Bialecki
- 10:00 p.m. — James Hurrell vs. Stowe Buntz
Day 5 — Mon., Dec. 15 (afternoon & evening)
- 12:30 p.m. — Brendan Dolan vs. Tavis Dudeney
- 1:30 p.m. — Cameron Menzies vs. Charlie Manby
- 2:30 p.m. — Mensur Suljovic vs. David Cameron
- 3:30 p.m. — Peter Wright vs. Noa-Lynn van Leuven
- 7:00 p.m. — Martin Lukeman vs. Max Hopp
- 8:00 p.m. — Dirk van Duijvenbode vs. Andy Baetens
- 9:00 p.m. — Jonny Clayton vs. Adam Lipscombe
- 10:00 p.m. — Connor Scutt vs. Simon Whitlock
Day 6 — Tue., Dec. 16 (afternoon & evening)
- 12:30 p.m. — Alan Soutar vs. Teemu Harju
- 1:30 p.m. — Nick Kenny vs. Justin Hood
- 2:30 p.m. — Scott Williams vs. Paolo Nebrida
- 3:30 p.m. — Chris Dobey vs. Xiaochen Zong
- 7:00 p.m. — Ricardo Pietreczko vs. Jose De Sousa
- 8:00 p.m. — Danny Noppert vs. Jurjen van der Velde
- 9:00 p.m. — Gerwyn Price vs. Adam Gawlas
- 10:00 p.m. — Niko Springer vs. Joe Comito
Day 7 — Wed., Dec. 17 (evening)
- 7:00 p.m. — Matt Campbell vs. Adam Sevada
- 8:00 p.m. — Raymond van Barneveld vs. Stefan Bellmont
- 9:00 p.m. — James Wade vs. Ryusei Azemoto
- 10:00 p.m. — Martin Schindler vs. Stephen Burton
Day 8 — Thurs., Dec. 18 (afternoon & evening)
- 12:30 p.m. — Callan Rydz vs. Patrik Kovacs
- 1:30 p.m. — Thibault Tricole vs. Motomu Sakai
- 2:30 p.m. — Ryan Joyce vs. Owen Bates
- 3:30 p.m. — Mike De Decker vs. David Munyua
- 7:00 p.m. — Jermaine Wattimena vs. Dominik Gruellich
- 8:00 p.m. — Dave Chisnall vs. Fallon Sherrock
- 9:00 p.m. — Michael van Gerwen vs. Mitsuhiko Tatsunami
- 10:00 p.m. — Krzysztof Ratajski vs. Alexis Toylo
Day 9 — Fri., Dec. 19 (afternoon & evening)
- 12:30 p.m. — Kevin Doets vs. Matthew Dennant
- 1:30 p.m. — Ryan Meikle vs. Jesus Salate
- 2:30 p.m. — Mickey Mansell vs. Leonard Gates
- 3:30 p.m. — Josh Rock vs. Gemma Hayter
- 7:00 p.m. — William O’Connor vs. Krzysztof Kciuk
- 8:00 p.m. — Daryl Gurney vs. Beau Greaves
- 9:00 p.m. — Nathan Aspinall vs. Lourence Ilagan
- 10:00 p.m. — Keane Barry vs. Tim Pusey
Key dates for the later rounds
- Second round: Dec. 20–23
- Third round (last 32): Dec. 27–29
- Fourth round (last 16): Dec. 29–30
- Quarterfinals: Jan. 1
- Semifinals: Jan. 2
- Final: Jan. 3
Second- and third-round fixtures to note
- Day 10 (Sat., Dec. 20) highlights: Ryan Searle vs. Brendan Dolan; Michael Smith vs. Niels Zonneveld; Chris Dobey vs. Andrew Gilding.
- Day 11 (Sun., Dec. 21) highlights: Joe Cullen vs. Mensur Suljovic; Luke Littler vs. David Davies; Rob Cross vs. Ian White.
- Third round (Dec. 27–29) will set the field for the final 16, with Littler, van Gerwen, Humphries and top seeds all in action.
Prize money breakdown
| Position | Players | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| Winner | (1) | £1,000,000 |
| Runner-up | (1) | £400,000 |
| Semi-finalists | (2) | £200,000 |
| Quarter-finalists | (4) | £100,000 |
| Fourth round losers | (8) | £60,000 |
| Third round losers | (16) | £35,000 |
| Second round losers | (32) | £25,000 |
| First round losers | (64) | £15,000 |
Tournament format and rules fans should know
- All 128 players start in round one; no seeded byes this year.
- The bracket is laid out in four quarters, with seeded positions designed to meet in later rounds if they progress.
- Match length increases as the event goes on:
- First & second round — best of 5 sets.
- Third & fourth round — best of 7 sets.
- Quarterfinals — best of 9 sets.
- Semifinals — best of 11 sets.
- Final — best of 13 sets.
- Each set is first to 3 legs (best of 5 legs). In a final-set decider a two-leg advantage is required or a sudden-death leg follows if tied after 10 legs.
Additional reading and features about PDC darts
- 7 darts players who could make the Premier League one day
- Every PDC player’s walk-on theme
- Watch: Luke Littler’s nine-darter against Josh Rock
- Broadcast details: PDC World Championship streaming information
