It's time to double up on the fun at the PDC World Cup of Darts.
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Everyone's favourite team event is back for another spectacular showing in Hamburg. 64 players feature, representing 32 nations, with one world title on the line. The number of participants will be brutally halved in a quick-fire first round. Seeds are at serious risk, and PDC world rankings mean little. That's the magic of the World Cup of Darts.
18:00 Gibraltar v Japan
We start with Dyson Parody and Guest - a.k.a Gibraltar. The combustible Parody has been at every edition of the event, but to date has masterminded just one win. They've drawn England and Netherlands in the past two years. Japan are an easier opponent on paper, but Haruki Muramatsu (another ever-present) and Seigo Asada are a top quality pairing. Antony Lopez is the man tasked with completing the Gibraltar team this year.
18:30 Northern Ireland v South Africa
Northern Ireland are a strong duo - Daryl Gurney's star continues to rise, while Brendan Dolan is a tricky opponent for any player. They've been handed an interesting draw. South Africa's side is made up of a veteran and a rookie, in Devon Petersen and Vernon Bouwers. But the sole African representative at the World Cup of Darts has a history of causing shocks.
19:00 New Zealand v Lithuania
Lithuania need to build their history from scratch. The Eastern Europeans are the only side who weren't here last year. They replace Thailand, mostly thanks to the presence of Darius Labanauskas. Mindaugas Barauskas will be looking to help Labanauskas and his nation past the New Zealand pairing of Cody Harris and Haupai Puha. Both teams are dark horses, but one will suffer the ignominy of an early exit.
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19:30 Belgium v Hong Kong
Belgium are among the select group of teams who have been close to winning this tournament without ever doing so. The 2013 runners-up boast an excellent team in Kim Huybrechts and Dimitri van den Bergh, though neither are in stunning form. Royden Lam and Kai Fan Leung will be aiming to lead Hong Kong to a shock win over the seventh seeds.
Remember, you can keep up with all the live scores and stats from the PDC World Cup of Darts 2019.
20:00 Brazil v Sweden
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This is already guaranteed to be a landmark World Cup of Darts. Magnus Caris, the Scandinavian star, will bow out of the professional game after this tournament. It's up to him and Dennis Nilsson to make sure it isn't a short goodbye. They play Brazil, who smashed Denmark on debut last year. This tie is a repeat of football's 1958 World Cup final, which Brazil won 5-2. Diogo Portela - surely the Pele of Brazilian darts - will be key to possibly matching that scoreline.
20:30 Wales v Singapore
There is plenty of talk about Wales as possible champions. And why not? Gerwyn Price is one of the best in the world. Jonny Clayton isn't far behind. They make a good team, and sit on the opposite side of the draw to the only two teams ever to win this thing. How embarrassing it would be, then, if they were to lose to Singapore in round one. Paul and Harith Lim have previous in that regard.
21:00 Hungary v Germany
Germany are once again the World Cup of Darts host nation, and will benefit from partisan backing. Max Hopp and Martin Schindler shouldn't need it in round one. They face Pal Szekely and Janos Vegso of Hungary, one of those nations which has so far acted as filler. They could really shake things up if they can conjure up a surprise.
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21:30 Scotland v Denmark
The night ends with the second seeds taking to the stage. On paper, you can't get a pairing much stronger than Gary Anderson and Peter Wright. Yet Anderson is injured, and has barely played. Wright has, but his erratic performances have hardly been inspiring. You wonder, then, if Denmark's mix of the wily Per Laursen and the former Denmark Open doubles champ Niels Heinsoe can't cause a major upset.
Click here to check out the PDC World Cup of Darts 2019 tournament centre.
Thursday session schedule (play starts 1800 BST)
Gibraltar v Japan Northern Ireland v South Africa New Zealand v Lithuania Belgium v Hong Kong Brazil v Sweden Wales v Singapore Hungary v Germany Scotland v Denmark
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- Play all legs and the winners split the pot. Luke gets the lot of he wins them all. If your occupation is darts player you can't enter, regardless of ability.BandB01-11-2026
- I'm quite a jaded person all things considered, but to be honest I found Beat Luke Littler to be pretty entertaining. It certainly wasn't seamless, which is to be expected given the lack of precedence, but I actually think the pacing was pretty good, the production was impressive, and there was a good sense of humour and levity to it. I think it was a very ambitious undertaking but one that, for the most part, paid off. I liked the system with the four pots and I think it added to the drama and intrigue. I enjoyed seeing the diverse range of entrants and learning about their backstories. I think the interactivity was pretty clever and well-integrated. The panel was a little incoherent at times; Lee Mack shone however, and his improvisational skills were appreciated during some more awkward interstitial moments. As far as the darts is concerned, it was a shame that the format didn't allow Littler to get into full flow. You obviously don't want him to steamroll everyone but you want to feel like you're getting the full Littler package rather than seeing him struggling to get out of first gear. I will say that his leg against Jayden Walker was very impressive, but it was mostly downhill from there. The attraction revolves around Littler being this untouchable, indomitable force, yet the format doesn't really allow him to fulfil that characterisation. As for Fallon Sherrock, she was mightily impressive and deserved the victory. It is a testament to her unshakeable character that she was able to bang in a 14-darter under such mind-bending pressure. Everything that has been said about the misleading marketing is valid, though they were clear about their eligibility criteria and were able to offload the responsibility somewhat by bringing the viewers into the decision-making process in real time. What is clear though, is that Fallon played the game according to the rules, and she should not be criticised for that, much less abused. I will admit though that it is a kick in the teeth for those true amateurs who committed time and money to the course, and I would also question those who think pub players would have no chance, given that some of Littler's winning legs were dispatched in 7 visits to the board! The great thing about darts is that it isn't so much that amateurs cannot replicate the feats of brilliance pulled off by professionals of the sport, than it is that they simply cannot replicate the consistency of their output, something that this format almost entirely removes from the equation. It should also be noted that, financially, Fallon certainly stands to benefit much less in relative terms from the paycheque than would your average pub thrower, as I'm sure she nets a fair income from the lucrative exhibition circuit alone. What I do hope is that she might use this as an opportunity to really build up a head of steam heading into the new season, as it seems long overdue that she come through Q-School and really take it to the pros on a week-in week-out basis, but whatever she chooses to do, she has certainly achieved enough already for one if not several lifetimes, so who am I to dictate terms? To conclude though, I will state once again that I found Beat Luke Littler to be a pretty enjoyable evening of entertainment. I do feel for the contestants who never actually had the chance to try their luck against the world #1, although I suppose it comes with the format, but all which inevitably raises the question: will Netflix be tempted to do it all again next year? It's hard to say. Whether it would be financially viable, I can't weigh in there. One point I have been making though, and which I touched on earlier, is that the entire concept relies on a public perception that Littler is more or less unbeatable, and that certainly hasn't been the case of late. If the execs had been trying to pitch the show in recent months while Littler has seemed vulnerable, rather than when he was mopping up almost every major title on the calendar, it would certainly be a tougher sell. We will have to see in about 6 months' time whether Littler can still reliably command perception as a near-unstoppable force in darts, and then we'll have a clearer idea about whether we should expect a second helping. Even as a one-off experiment though, and with all the controversy taken into account, I still don't think they disgraced themselves by any means, and that will probably be my lingering assessment of the event when all is said and done.Deduce635801-11-2026
- Fair play to Fallon. But...shows the mockery when a professional players wins what was meant to be an amateur v Pro event, Littlers performance was poor, and what about the players who didn't get a game? Would have been better if the pot was split amoungst all the winners and they all got a leg.BandB31-10-2026
- Not even slightly interestedrick6730-10-2026
- And yet the PDC has decided to aggravate this problem by doubling the Players Championship Finals field from 2027. I can't imagine there will be fewer withdrawals next year with even less reason to turn up. I can only hope that a whole slew of Challenge Tour top-up players receive enough prize money in the absence of much of the elite, that some of the more complacent among them struggle to scrape into even a heavily diluted field! More semi-pro players will get to test their mettle, but the standard of competition will be much inferior. It could hardly be said that the Players Championship series will provide an opportunity for darts' second string to test their Tour Card credentials anymore, but at least it will underscore the achievements of those Challenge Tour players of current and previous years, who were able to prove themselves as more than capable of competing with, and beating, the elite of the sport on a consistent basis, and reaping the due rewards.Deduce635828-10-2026
- No point in being there? Champions want to win.Deduce635828-10-2026
- Littler lost to crabtree in the youth/junior/whatever you call it. He had no point in being there. He's unfortunately now got to the stage,he feels all he has to do is get on the stage to win. Well,I hope he realises part of his fear factor has gone. Happened to Taylor,then van gerwen,and it's causing him to realise pretty sharp,he isn't unstoppable. It's good for the sport,not 1 single player in my 60 years has ever,or will ever be, unbeatable.rick6725-10-2026
- I think it's great to see Mark Webster looking good,good ladrick6725-10-2026
- I agree,I can't believe the lack of coverage of this sad loss. Always enjoyed watching him,but I guess now it's all about littler,well it seems that way. Darts has sadly lost a good manrick6717-10-2026
- In the absence of a report regarding the death of Stefan Lord, I'll assist. An excellent player in the late 70s and early 80s, he actually won the now defunct 3rd place match at two World Championships and a couple of the News of the World Championships. A fabulous player and easily the best Swedish player ever. Rest peacefully Stefan.richieburnettrocks16-10-2026