It was a while before the first seed was eliminated at the World Darts Championship, but as soon as the first-seeded player had to leave the tournament, the proverbial gate was opened.
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No fewer than 11 of the top-32 seeded players were eliminated in the second round of the World Darts Championship. Based on the ranking, Peter Wright was the biggest victim. The number four seed was eliminated by Jim Williams.
Nathan Aspinall and Danny Noppert were the other players from the top-10 of the PDC Order of Merit who already had to leave the tournament. They went down against Ricky Evans and Scott Williams respectively. Dirk van Duijvenbode also lost the world title. He was defeated by Boris Krcmar.
James Wade, Dimitri van den Bergh, Andrew Gilding, Josh Rock, Jose de Sousa, Callan Rydz and Kim Huybrechts are the other players from the top-32 world rankings who will not return to the 2024 World Darts Championship after the Christmas break.
Last year, only three players from the top-32 of the seeds were eliminated in the second round of the World Darts Championship. So now there are eight more, but that is not yet a record. During the 2019 edition, as many as thirteen seeds had to leave the tournament after the second round.
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of DartsNews.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy across professional darts coverage. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces, playing a central role in the development and daily operation of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has extensive experience in darts media and has been closely involved in coverage of the professional darts circuit for several years. Within the UK darts community, he is a recognised figure known for his consistent editorial output and ongoing reporting on major tournaments and developments across the PDC calendar.
In his current role, Samuel works closely with editors and writers to ensure content meets clear journalistic standards, with a focus on source verification, editorial consistency, and timely updates when new, confirmed information becomes available.
❌ Seeds OUT of 2024 World Championship
🏴 (4) Wright
🏴 (6) Aspinall
🇳🇱 (7) Noppert
🇳🇱 (12) van Duijvenbode
🏴 (13) Wade
🇧🇪 (15) Van den Bergh
🏴 (20) Gilding
🇬🇧 (23) Rock
🇵🇹 (25) de Sousa
🏴 (30) Rydz
🇧🇪 (31) K Huybrechts