Flanders Darts Trophy 2026: Results, Preview, Draw, Schedule, Field, History, Format and Predictions

The Flanders Darts Trophy 2026 is set to take place this weekend between Friday 11 - Sunday 13 September and will be the 13th of 15th PDC European Tour events with only tilts in Basel and Maastricht to come after this weekend. It features a field of 48 players and £230,000 in Prize Money, with £35,000 going to the winner.

The field is headlined by Luke Littler for now albeit he may still withdraw with The Nuke managing to seal his qualification for Dortmund by winning in Prague this past weekend. Also involved are Luke Humphries, Gian van Veen, Jonny Clayton, James Wade, Michael van Gerwen among others.

It is a tournament that was introduced to the tour back in 2024 with Dave Chisnall winning the first. The second went the way of Luke Littler in 2025 who beat Josh Rock in the final.

Beau Greaves, Raymond van Barneveld, Joe Cullen, Dirk van Duijvenbode, Cameron Menzies, Rob Cross and Luke Woodhouse are among those also in through the qualification routes (ProTour and Tour Card Holder Qualifier) and is the last tournament before the World Series Finals in Amsterdam.

We head into the final day at the Flanders Darts Trophy with only a few big names remaining and another big chance for a title success for those who want it. As ever, we go draw order on the Sunday with the winners facing each other.

Gian van Veen is top seed anyway this weekend, and he is still in after Gabriel Clemens success. He faces off against Kevin Doets. 'Hawkeye' saw off Krzysztof Ratajski.

Ryan Searle v Chris Dobey is the third-round match three, with Searle seeing off Andy Baetens while Niels Zonneveld fell to Dobey creating this all-English affair, so either way we get a Dutchman v Englishman in the quarter-finals.

Then onto Ryan Joyce, who took down Josh Rock; he faces Jermaine Wattimena, who saw off Karel Sedlacek. The winner faces the victor of the blockbuster match of the session on paper between Gerwyn Price and Ross Smith. What a tasty tie which sees Price, who averaged 103, against Bradley Brooks, face the Budapest and Riesa champions. Both are huge power scorers and great players to watch.

As are James Wade and Rob Cross next up. They face off again, and the winner faces off also a Dutchman either way. Danny Noppert takes on Wessel Nijman. Before we get a mostly English section with an Aussie in the middle. Luke Woodhouse faces Damon Heta before we get Stephen Bunting v Nathan Aspinall. A true darting treat and who knows who will end Sunday the champion.

Samuel Gill, Editor for DartsNews.com has gone for Ross Smith to win this weekend.

Again this weekend, the big names have decided not to bother colour me shocked. So as a result I will go for some players who have been doing the business on the periphery.

Ross Smith was awesome in Budapest and has the form to win many of these. I see him given his route having a good weekend. Same with Josh Rock.

I will also pick Beau Greaves if she can get through her tough opening section to do the business and get to the latter stages. A lot of pressure but she has made incremental improvements that on the eye show sooner rather than later, she will get it right.

James Wade is also back after some rest and I see him performing well. Michael van Gerwen and Gerwyn Price to fall early (sorry to them!)

*** Ross Smith

** Josh Rock, Beau Greaves, James Wade

Mats Leering, Editor for DartsNieuws.com has Gerwyn Price as his winner.

Following the withdrawals of Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, Jonny Clayton and Gary Anderson, and having seen the draw, there is now one clear favourite who stands out to me: Gerwyn Price. The Welshman does not appear to have the toughest of second-round assignments on paper and, with several of his biggest rivals absent, I expect him to take full advantage in Antwerp.

Elsewhere in the draw, Ross Smith, Josh Rock and Jermaine Wattimena also appear to have been handed favourable routes. Under normal circumstances, I would expect all three to make it through to Sunday afternoon, and once they reach that stage, each of them is capable of mounting a serious title challenge on their day.

Wessel Nijman would normally be another player I would include among the leading contenders. However, his second-round opponent will be either Sebastian Bialecki or Kim Huybrechts, both of whom remain firmly in contention for one of the final World Grand Prix qualification spots. That could make for a particularly dangerous opening match for Nijman.

With the World Grand Prix race in mind, I do not think any of the four remaining contenders — Huybrechts, Bialecki, Cristo Reyes and Joe Cullen — have been handed particularly straightforward draws.

Reyes faces Rob Cross, who has been showing good form recently. Should the Spaniard come through that match, Martin Schindler would await him in the next round. The German has not been at his best of late, so if Reyes can overcome ‘Voltage’, there could certainly be an opportunity for him to make a deeper run.

Cullen will begin against a qualifier, but Ryan Searle potentially awaits in the second round, which is certainly no easy assignment either. As for Bialecki and Huybrechts, I have a feeling their first-round meeting could effectively decide one of the remaining World Grand Prix tickets. The winner of that match could potentially leave Antwerp knowing that their place in the Grand Prix is secure.

Favourites

***Gerwyn Price

**Josh Rock, Ross Smith

*Jermaine Wattimena, Wessel Nijman, James Wade

Lucas Michael, Editor for DartsNews.com sees James Wade as the champion.

It is back-to-back European Tour ventures as the darts starts to ramp up ahead of a busy period in the season. All eyes will be on Belgium with the Flanders Darts Trophy a hugely important event.

With it being the cut-off for the World Grand Prix, there will be a number of storylines floating around. However, the top players who have already secured their spot in the major event will be fully focused on the title, and there is a huge boost in the form of Luke Littler and Luke Humphries not participating.

This opens the door for other competitors who will look to strike gold. There are strong arguments favouring Gerwyn Price as the favourite with Nathan Aspinall also a huge threat in my eyes. The Dutch duo of Michael van Gerwen and Gian van Veen do not need to be at their best to win the title, but timing is key for when they do find their best stuff as they prolong their inconsistent patch.

On the topic of van Gerwen, he may not even make it past the second round with either Damon Heta or Beau Greaves his opponent. Another brutal offering for ‘Beau ‘n’ Arrow’ but despite this I believe her game will click and I see a deep run from her this weekend.

Nevertheless, for the title there is an argument for about 10-15 players. The last time James Wade competed on a big stage, he won the Australian Darts Trophy. I can see him leaving with another trophy to add to his collection with his decade-long wait for a European Tour title set to end in my opinion.

*** James Wade

** Gerwyn Price, Nathan Aspinall

* Beau Greaves, Gian van Veen, Ross Smith

Nicolas Gayer, Editor for DartsNews.DE sees Nathan Aspinall as the champion this weekend in Antwerp.

The European Tour is approaching its grand finale, and I have a feeling that one of the sport’s biggest names still has plenty of unfinished business on the European circuit: Nathan Aspinall.

“The Asp” enjoyed a remarkable European Tour campaign last year, lifting three titles, while the Englishman has added one more to his tally so far this season.

Aspinall has spoken openly in recent weeks about problems in his personal life and admitted that darts is not his number-one priority at the moment. At the same time, however, he has made it clear that he intends to work his way through this dip in form with some focused practice and get himself back to his best in time for the business end of the darts season — and I expect to see the first signs of that in Antwerp. With Luke Littler and Luke Humphries both withdrawing, the field looks wide open, and while Aspinall would not be my outright favourite to lift the trophy, I certainly fancy “The Asp” to make a statement this weekend.

I also expect Gerwyn Price and James Wade to have a major say in the destination of the title. Price appears to have turned his season around at exactly the right time after his surprise run to the World Matchplay final, while Wade lifted the trophy on his most recent appearance on a big stage in Australia.

Favourites:

*** Nathan Aspinall

** Gerwyn Price, James Wade

* Gian van Veen, Chris Dobey, Ross Smith

Pieter Verbeek, Editor for DartsNieuws.com picks Gerwyn Price to seal the title.

I'm really looking forward to the Flanders Darts Trophy, not least because it is the final event in the qualification race for the World Grand Prix. Heading into the tournament, Joe Cullen, Cristo Reyes, Kim Huybrechts and Sebastian Bialecki appear to be battling it out for the final two qualifying spots, with Cullen and Reyes currently on the right side of the cut-off.

However, none of the four have been handed particularly favourable draws. Cullen faces home favourite Andy Baetens, while Reyes takes on former world champion Rob Cross. Huybrechts and Bialecki have even been drawn against each other, meaning the loser of that match will definitely be eliminated from the race.

Of course, there is also a title to be won in Antwerp. I think Gerwyn Price has a good chance of taking the trophy. He is in the top half of the bracket, which looks slightly more favourable at first glance. However, he could already run into Ross Smith in the third round, and I can see the winner of that match going all the way to the final.

As for who will come through the bottom half? My pick is James Wade, who won a title in Australia before skipping the two most recent European Tour events. 'The Machine' was in outstanding form at the Australian Darts Masters and I expect him to have brought that level back with him to Europe. Michael van Gerwen, Nathan Aspinall and Wessel Nijman are the other players I consider serious contenders.

*** Gerwyn Price

** Ross Smith, James Wade

* Michael van Gerwen, Nathan Aspinall, Wessel Nijman

The draw will be confirmed usually on the Thursday before the event starts at around 12 BST/1 CET.

The schedule will be confirmed after the draw is set albeit it tends to follow the same format throughout each event. The ProTour players face the qualifiers on the Friday. This is followed by the top 16 facing the winner on Saturday. From Quarter-Finals onwards, the schedule mirrors the bracket with winners facing each other.