Adrian Lewis possibly not going to Q-School after all; here's why chances of participating are slim

Many darts fans who have been following the sport for some time hope that Adrian Lewis will actually make his comeback on the PDC circuit in 2026. In April 2023, 'Jackpot' abruptly stopped playing PDC tournaments and as of 2025, he also lost his Tour Card.

Lewis is considered one of the most successful players of this century. The dart player from Stoke-on-Trent grew up under the tutelage of darts legend Phil Taylor and followed in his mentor's footsteps by becoming world champion in 2011 and 2012. He also won the UK Open and the European Darts Championship.

After being active on the darts circuit for a long time, he was ready for a break in 2023. ''After more than 20 years, I feel I need to take a break from the professional circuit. I would like to thank my sponsors, the PDC, the PDPA (players' union, ed.) and my family,'' Lewis said in a statement at the time.

Later, more about the background came out. Lewis' wife was diagnosed with incurable kidney disease, while "Jackpot's" daughter was diagnosed with autism and ADHD, which requires a lot of attention and care.

This year, Lewis hinted at a comeback in the future. He competed in the MODUS Super Series for the first time and talked about possibly competing in the Q-School in 2026

"I’m hoping to go back, but whether I do or not this year, I don’t know," he told Juicy Darts.

“I mean, I am leaning towards going back to Q-School, you know. We’ll just have to wait and see. I don’t know yet. I’ve got to make sure I’m mentally right, and that’s what it comes down to more than anything else.”

However, there are omens that indicate Lewis is not yet going for a PDC Tour Card in 2026. A two-time world champion, the Englishman is a popular guest at exhibitions, and a glance at his 2026 schedule reveals that his priorities are primarily on the exhibition circuit.

Thus, the Nottinghamshire Darts Academy has booked the former world number two for a demonstration on Sunday, February 22, 2026. Looking at the PDC calendar, the Poland Darts Open (ET1) is scheduled during this weekend.

Another sign that Lewis is not going for a Tour Card is the player contract that must be signed by Tour Card holders. In that contract there are all kinds of things players have to abide by. One of them is that a maximum of four Tour Card holders may be booked for one demo event.

Several announcements have already been made on social media for exhibition tournaments in 2026, with Lewis as one of the crowd-pleasers. Four Tour Card holders have already been booked at some of these exhibitions. As an example, see the Face Off event on Oct. 31, 2026, which includes Tour Card holders Luke Littler, Gary Anderson, Nathan Aspinall and Ricky Evans in addition to Lewis and Phil Taylor.

Of course, it could be that Lewis is thinking of participating in the Q-School, then becoming eligible to play on the Challenge Tour. But given on his bookings for 2026, there seems little chance that the English crowd favorite will be a regular on the Pro Tour next season.