For the first time in PDC history, a German player leads the seeds at a PDC major. Martin Schindler managed to get a 1't behind his name at the European Darts Championship.
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Schindler was one of the few top players who actually competed in all thirteen Euro Tour tournaments, which 'The Wall' did this year with great success, as Schindler managed to win two of these Euro Tours.
The 28-year-old German was the best at the International Darts Open in April by winning 8-5 over Gerwyn Price in the final. A title at the Swiss Darts Trophy followed in September after an epic final against Ryan Searle (8-7). In addition to two titles, there were also two semifinals and three quarterfinals for Schindler on the Euro Tour. During the season, Schindler earned a total of 105,500 pounds on the Euro Tour.
Schindler is the seventh player to lead the list. Phil Taylor did so from 2008 to 2013, during the period when the world rankings were still leading and there was no Euro Tour ranking. In the first four editions, Taylor actually managed to take the title as number one.
From 2014 to 2019, the field of participants was led by Michael van Gerwen, who claimed the title in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017. From 2020, the European Darts Championship was no longer won by the player who led the placings list.
Joe Cullen was the number one seed in the coronagraph 2020, while Gerwyn Price had achieved this status in 2022. In the past two seasons, this honor fell to Luke Humphries (2022) and Dave Chisnall (2023).
The seventeenth edition of the European Darts Championship will take place from Thursday, Oct. 24 to Sunday, Oct. 27. The field of participants for this event consists of the top-32 of the Euro Tour Order of Merit.
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.
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Players to be #1 seed for the European Championship
Phil Taylor (2008-2013)
Michael van Gerwen (2014-2019)
Joe Cullen (2020)
Gerwyn Price (2021)
Luke Humphries (2022)
Dave Chisnall (2023)
Martin Schindler (2024)