PDC Order of Merit Update: Littler cuts Humphries’ lead at the top, Van Veen surges into top 10, Peter Wright on the verge of losing top-32 spot

The dust has barely settled after the 2025 European Championship in Dortmund, but the impact on the PDC Order of Merit is already seismic. Gian van Veen’s stunning maiden major victory has shaken up the world rankings, Luke Littler is closing fast on Luke Humphries, and former world champion Peter Wright finds himself in serious danger of slipping out of the top 32.

The big mover of the week is undoubtedly Gian van Veen. The 23-year-old Dutchman stormed to European Championship glory, taking out Michael van Gerwen in the semi-finals before edging world number one Luke Humphries 11–10 in a dramatic final.

It’s a career-changing result for “GVV The Giant,” who climbs from world number 15 to number 7 and pockets a personal-best £120,000 payday. With that rise comes a new level of opportunity — Van Veen now looks well placed for a Premier League Darts debut in 2026 and is almost certain to feature on next year’s World Series circuit. He’ll also benefit from automatic second-round entry at all European Tour events, giving him a crucial extra rest day each weekend.

At the top of the rankings, Luke Humphries remains the world number one, but his once comfortable cushion has shrunk. Luke Littler, despite only reaching the second round in Dortmund, has cut the gap to just £72,500 — a margin that could easily vanish before the end of the season.

Michael van Gerwen stays third, nearly £1 million adrift of Humphries, while Stephen Bunting, James Wade, and Jonny Clayton round out the pack just ahead of Van Veen.

Below the leading pack, Rob Cross slips one place to eighth after an early exit in Dortmund, while Chris Dobey drops three to eleventh. Josh Rock and Danny Noppert both remain steady inside the top 10, with Gerwyn Price down to 13th following a quiet few months.

Elsewhere, Gary Anderson and Ross Smith each fall one position, while Martin Schindler moves up to 16th, overtaking Dave Chisnall. There were also small rises for Ryan Searle, Nathan Aspinall, Jermaine Wattimena, and Daryl Gurney, plus a two-place jump for Ryan Joyce and an impressive five-place climb for Cameron Menzies, now up to 25th.

The most alarming story, however, belongs to Peter Wright. The two-time world champion and former European Champion endured a nightmare in Dortmund, bowing out in the first round to Damon Heta. With his 2023 prize money now wiped from the two-year rolling system, Wright has crashed all the way down to 30th in the world — perilously close to losing his top-32 status for the first time in over a decade.

“Snakebite” will need a huge end to the season to avoid a further tumble, with big-money events still to come.

Behind Wright, Ricardo Pietreczko has climbed above both Andrew Gilding and Joe Cullen, leaving “The Rockstar” clinging to the final top-32 spot. Raymond van Barneveld sits 34th but is now under pressure from fellow Dutchman Wessel Nijman, who’s up to 35th after surpassing Krzysztof Ratajski.

The coming weeks promise even more turbulence. The Grand Slam of Darts, Players Championship Finals, and the World Darts Championship will all carry huge ranking implications — especially with Alexandra Palace’s prize fund now doubled to £5 million. Every player at the Worlds will bank at least £15,000, and the new world champion will walk away with a record-breaking £1 million.

With those stakes, the next few months could completely reshape the darting hierarchy — and if the European Championship proved anything, it’s that the next major shift might already be on its way.