ANALYSIS: Belgium head to the World Cup of Darts with doubts, but can Mike De Decker and Dimitri Van den Bergh rediscover top form at the right time?

At the Eissporthalle in Frankfurt, the 2026 World Cup of Darts gets underway this Thursday. In this nation-versus-nation event, Belgium is seeded sixth this year. In this article, we take a look ahead at the prospects for the Belgian duo Mike De Decker and Dimitri Van den Bergh.

The World Cup of Darts features forty countries this year. The top four seeds enter only at the knockout stage. The other 36 nations are split into twelve groups of three. Only the group winner advances to the last 16.

Belgium has been drawn in a group with Hong Kong and Slovenia. Team Belgium consists for the second year of Mike De Decker and Dimitri Van den Bergh. For De Decker, it is only his second appearance at the World Cup of Darts. Van den Bergh, by contrast, is far more experienced, with this being his ninth appearance.

For years, Kim Huybrechts was a fixture in the Belgian team, with thirteen appearances he remains Belgium’s record holder, but after Van den Bergh, The Hurricane was also overtaken by De Decker in the world rankings. Yet Huybrechts is the Belgian in form this year, though a return to the Belgian team at the World Cup of Darts comes a year too soon for him.

In the past, Belgium has reached the semi-finals of the World Cup of Darts no fewer than eight times. Among the nations that have never won the tournament, no one does better. In 2013, Belgium, then represented by brothers Kim and Ronny Huybrechts, were the runners-up.

The cards are less favorably stacked for the Belgians this year. Van den Bergh has been struggling for a long time and even fears for the retention of his PDC Tour Card. The now 31-year-old from Antwerp suddenly withdrew from a floor event midway through last year, then took a break and only returned at the World Cup of Darts. That, however, did not bring success; together with De Decker they did beat Latvia. After a defeat to the Philippines, the Belgians had to bow out in the group stage.

Van den Bergh failed to rediscover his form during the rest of 2025 as well. This year started disastrously with a string of defeats, and only in the last two months has Van den Bergh begun to show signs of recovery. The Dreammaker has adjusted his throw in recent months and said he is still searching for the right rhythm, but that his confidence is gradually returning. Whether that is in time to shine at the World Cup of Darts is the question. Van den Bergh does like to play for his country and often finds something extra on such occasions.

De Decker is also not in the best spell of his career. The 30-year-old Real Deal won the World Grand Prix in 2024, but has struggled to back it up since. De Decker rarely throws truly poor matches, but consistency has been lacking. Since switching material sponsors, he has never quite seemed to recapture the right feel.

The two Belgians get on very well, and that is crucial at the World Cup of Darts, where only pairs matches are played. Given their dip in form and confidence, it will be vital that De Decker and Van den Bergh lift each other and offer support in sticky moments.

With Hong Kong, the Belgians have drawn a nation that cannot be underestimated. Lok-Yin Lee and Man Lok Leung reached the quarterfinals last year, where they eventually lost to Wales. Two years ago, Leung caused a major shock at the World Darts Championship by knocking out Gian van Veen. It hardly needs saying that both players can throw a fine dart. Still, the Belgians possess more intrinsic quality. However, the World Cup of Darts group stage is played over best-of-7 legs, leaving little margin for error.

For Slovenia, the other nation in Belgium’s group, this will be only their second appearance after taking part in the inaugural World Cup of Darts in 2010. PDC Tour Card holder Benjamin Pratnemer teams up with the virtually unknown Stefano Bozicek. Under normal circumstances, Slovenia should not pose a problem for Belgium.

In conclusion, Belgium certainly remains a nation to watch at the World Cup of Darts. Few teams line up with two former major champions. To succeed, however, the Belgians must rediscover their old level. We will find out from Thursday.