DRAW PDC Players Championship 25 | Michael van Gerwen and Beau Greaves headline first ProTour event after World Matchplay

Michael van Gerwen and Beau Greaves headline the field for Players Championship 25 as the PDC ProTour resumes in Hildesheim on Tuesday. The 128-player tournament takes place at Halle 39 only two days after the conclusion of the World Matchplay in Blackpool.

Van Gerwen will begin against Adam Warner, while newly crowned Women’s World Matchplay champion Greaves faces Chris Landman. Six-time winner Wessel Nijman, Chris Dobey, Gian van Veen and German favourites Martin Schindler and Gabriel Clemens are also among the leading names competing for the £15,000 top prize.

Van Gerwen returns to the floor looking to rediscover the level that carried him to victory at Players Championship 15 earlier this season. His 8-5 final win over Dirk van Duijvenbode ended a wait of more than 12 months for a PDC ranking title and included some of his best darts of 2026.

The three-time world champion opens against Warner, with either Leon Weber or Darius Labanauskas awaiting the winner in round two. Greaves heads directly from her second Women’s World Matchplay triumph into another ProTour appearance. The 22-year-old defeated Fallon Sherrock 6-5 in Sunday’s Blackpool final, adding another major honour to a season in which she has also broken new ground on the mixed PDC circuit.

Her 8-7 victory over Michael Smith in the PC11 final made her the first woman to win a PDC ranking title. That followed the nine-darter she produced at PC6, another first for a woman on the PDC ProTour, while her consistent results have lifted her to seventh on the Players Championship Order of Merit.

Although Van Gerwen and Greaves provide the biggest names in the draw, Nijman remains the player everyone must beat in Hildesheim.

The Dutchman has won six of the opening 24 Players Championship events and collected £134,500, placing him £48,250 clear of Dobey at the top of the dedicated Order of Merit. His victories have come at PC2, PC8, PC10, PC12, PC14 and PC21.

Nijman became the first player in 14 years to win six Players Championship titles during a single season when he defeated Ryan Searle 8-6 in the PC21 final. He starts his pursuit of number seven against Darryl Pilgrim, one of the more dangerous unseeded players in the field.

Dobey, the only player other than Nijman, Luke Humphries and Ross Smith to win multiple Players Championship events in 2026, faces Maximilian Czerwinski. Kevin Doets, third on the circuit standings after his breakthrough PC13 triumph, takes on Jenson Walker.

Andrew Gilding opens against Cor Dekker after combining his PC16 title with the highest match average recorded on the Players Championship circuit this season. The former UK Open champion averaged 118.66 in a 6-0 demolition of Joe Cullen at PC13.

Clemens will compete on home soil for the first time since finally ending his long wait for a maiden PDC title.

The German Giant defeated Luke Woodhouse 8-6 in the PC24 final and sealed victory with a 170 checkout. That success came in his eighth PDC final after seven previous defeats and moved him up to 16th on the Players Championship Order of Merit.

Clemens begins against Rhys Griffin, while German number one Schindler takes on Nick Kenny. Ricardo Pietreczko faces Daniel Ayres and Max Hopp meets Owen Bates Hopp has already contested one Players Championship final in Hildesheim this season, although he was beaten 8-1 by Nijman at PC14.

One of the strongest matches in the opening round pits PC19 champion Jeffrey de Graaf against Scott Williams. De Graaf defeated Jonny Clayton 8-5 to claim his second PDC title in June, but Williams possesses the scoring power to punish any drop in level.

Keane Barry’s meeting with Raymond van Barneveld is another notable contest, while former world champions Peter Wright and Michael Smith face Adam Paxton and Greg Ritchie respectively.

Van Veen opens against Tom Sykes, Van Duijvenbode meets Sietse Lap and Dave Chisnall has been paired with Mario Vandenbogaerde. Niko Springer, who pushed Luke Littler in a high-quality World Matchplay opener, faces Cam Crabtree.

Littler is among the most prominent absentees and is yet to play a Players Championship event in 2026. Humphries, Gerwyn Price, Stephen Bunting, Jonny Clayton, Gary Anderson and PC23 winner Cameron Menzies are also missing from the final draw.

Play begins at 13:00 local time and 12:00 BST, with matches from four boards available through PDCTV.