Preview 2026 PDC World Darts Championship Final: First for Gian van Veen or back-to-back history for Luke Littler?

The World Darts Championship reaches its climax this Saturday evening. Of the 128 players who began the tournament on December 11, only two remain. After tonight we will know who the 2026 world champion is.

And what a final we are getting. Our very own Dutchman Gian van Veen faces none other than 18-year-old Luke Littler in the title match. Will “The Giant” become world champion for the first time in his career, or will “The Nuke” successfully defend last year’s crown?

Gian van Veen is playing a phenomenal tournament so far. The Dutchman faced serious resistance multiple times, but handled it all and powered his way to the final in convincing fashion. It started in the first round against the experienced Spaniard Cristo Reyes. Van Veen averaged almost 99 right out of the gate, and that was needed as Reyes pushed hard with just over 96. Van Veen impressed early and raced into a 2-0 lead after taking the first two sets 3-1 and then even 3-0. It still got tense when Reyes pulled it back to 2-1 and a deciding leg was needed in set four. Those deciders, as became clear later in the tournament, might well be the Dutchman’s calling card. He took that leg convincingly and booked his place in round two.

There he met Scotsman Alan Soutar, who produced a surprisingly strong display. “Soots” boldly took the lead and won the first set 3-1. He then moved 2-1 up in the second set, but Van Veen battled back brilliantly to snatch it. From that point the engine kicked in, he rattled off six straight legs and blew Soutar off the stage. He closed with an average of over 108. That performance earned him a third-round tie with Latvian Madars Razma. It wasn’t as spectacular as against Soutar, but it didn’t need to be as Razma managed only an 89 average. The Dutchman strolled through, moving 3-0 up in sets with relative ease. After Razma showed some resistance by taking the fourth, Van Veen dominated set five 3-0 to qualify for the quarterfinals.

There he faced 20-year-old debutant Charlie Manby. The Englishman held his own in the first two sets, leaving the scores level. But sets three and four went convincingly to “The Giant,” leaving him one set from victory. It got tight in the next, yet Van Veen won it via a deciding fifth leg to move into the last eight. That turned into an absolute thriller. In the quarterfinal he met Luke Humphries, and he hurt the world number two at exactly the right moments. In set one he deployed his tournament trademark by winning a deciding fifth leg, and after Humphries took set two he did the exact same in set three. He then took the fourth set 3-1, before once again claiming the decider in set five to lead 4-1 in sets. That broke Humphries for good, and Van Veen also won set six to beat the former world champion 5-1.

In his semifinal he finally faced Scottish legend Gary Anderson, and it turned into a real spectacle. Both men were superb, each finishing around a 103 average. They broke each other early to make it 1-1, and in the next two sets Van Veen did what he had done all tournament: win the deciding fifth legs. That put him 3-1 ahead, and in set five he again took the last leg to go 4-1 up. Anderson kept fighting and clawed back to 4-3. The final two sets again went to a fifth leg, and as expected it was Van Veen who took both, sealing a 6-3 win to reach his first World Darts Championship final.

Luke Littler has barely been tested at this Worlds. In his opener he faced Lithuanian Darius Labanauskas, averaged just over 101, and didn’t drop a set. In round two he met Welshman David Davies and did have to work harder. Davies threw well with a 95 average, but failed to hurt Littler. He had chances to take the first set, and could have made life tougher for “The Nuke” in set two as well. He didn’t take them, and the 18-year-old still moved 2-0 ahead. He then swept the third set to close out another 3-0 win.

In the third round he then produced a masterful display against Mensur Suljovic. With nine 180s and an average of over 107, he gave the Austrian no chance to get into the match. In total he dropped only four legs, and once again he won without losing a set. The fourth round, however, would be different. There he faced former world champion Rob Cross. Littler moved into a relatively comfortable 3-1 lead in sets and looked set for an easy night, but Cross began to offer some resistance. He fought back well to 3-2 and missed a single chance in the sixth set to level at 3-3. “The Nuke” capitalized on that miss to close out the match and win 4-2 to reach the quarterfinals.

In that quarterfinal it was one-way traffic again. He faced the Pole Krzysztof Ratajski, and although the first set was still tight at 3-2 in his favor, the next two sets both went 3-0 to Littler. Set four was more evenly matched, but once more Littler took it 3-2 to move 4-0 ahead. He then wrapped it up in the fifth set to cruise into the semifinals with a 5-0 win. There he met surprise semifinalist Ryan Searle. “Heavy Metal” stayed with him early and even nicked the opening set. But that was as far as it went. Littler leveled at 1-1, then put in a short burst to pull away and seemed to have broken Searle right there. The Englishman failed to win another set, allowing Littler to book a third straight final with a 6-1 victory.

Looking at the head-to-head between Littler and Van Veen, we can expect a tight final. The Dutchman is one of the few players on the Pro Tour who does not have a losing record against the 18-year-old. The pair have met eight times in total, with both Littler and Van Veen winning four of those encounters. They have already faced each other five times this year alone, four of which were on TV. Of those five matches, Littler won one more than Van Veen. But looking at the four televised meetings, it’s tied at 2-2. Let’s hope we really do get a tense and entertaining final tonight!