Preview PDC World Darts Championship 2026: Favourites, dark horses and everything you need to know for Ally Pally

The best darts season of the year is upon us again. From Thursday, December 11 to Saturday, January 3, 128 darters will compete for the world title at the World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace.

The tournament is a little more special in advance compared to past years, as the World Darts Championship has been upgraded in several areas. As many as 128 players are among the field of participants, 32 more than in past years. Moreover, the prize fund has risen to record levels. A total of 5 million prize money will be distributed, of which 1 million pounds will go to the world champion.
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Like all previous editions since 2008, the World Darts Championship will be played at the Alexandra Palace, an event venue in North London. For a while it seemed that the upcoming edition might be the last in Ally Pally, but nothing could be further from the truth. A new deal was recently struck with the Alexandra Palace, which means the iconic darts venue will continue to host the biggest tournament of the year at least through 2031.

Moreover, starting next year, the World Championships will move to another venue within the complex, allowing for many more spectators. In short, on many levels an edition to look forward to. And what better way to do that than with the preview of DartsNews.com. We do this preview by cutting the draw for the World Darts Championship into eight quarters and examining the players for each part of the draw.

The odds, especially after winning the world title early this year, were already life-and-death that Luke Littler would begin his hunt for title prolongation as world number one. Yet it took perhaps longer than expected for "The Nuke" to take over the lead position on the PDC Order of Merit from Luke Humphries, as it was not until after the Grand Slam of Darts that Littler succeeded in his mission to officially call himself the best dart player in the world.

This status also meant that Littler was put at the very top of the bracket. And if you look at his part of the draw, you can do nothing but conclude that the 18-year-old Englishman is perhaps in the easiest part of the draw for him. In his section, there are actually no players who are either in very good form on the one hand or have the abilities to shake Littler in a match over a long format on the otherhand.

Joe Cullen, Damon Heta and Rob Cross are the other seeded players in this section of the draw. All players who have performed little on television in 2025. And so there might just be a surprising name facing Littler at the last sixteen. Because Raymond van Barneveld might just know about Damon Heta, and it is also by no means a certainty that Rob Cross will be able to deal with both Cor Dekker and the winner of the duel between Ian White and Mervyn King.

For Van Barneveld, this outcome may be the dream draw, although 'Barney' has also shown few good matches on the big stage this year. But with the knowledge that 'Barney' usually has a better showing at a World Darts Championship than elsewhere, don't be surprised if , like two years ago, we see Littler facing Van Barneveld in the last sixteen. The Dutchman may not say it out loud, but for Van Barneveld the tournament would then be absolutely successful.

An interesting part of the draw, with the winner most likely facing Luke Littler in the quarterfinals. Gerwyn Price has the best chance for this, but there are more potential threats.

Chris Dobey, for example. 'Hollywood' has been performing excellently at Alexandra Palace for years, reaching at least the quarterfinals each of the past three editions. Last year 'Hollywood' even made it to the last four, including beating Price in the last eight. But the Englishman certainly does not have an easy draw. Xiaochen Zong in the first round should be doable, but then possibly the always dangerous Andrew Gilding awaits and in the third round Luke Woodhouse is the possible opponent. 'The Shed' has made strides at the stage tournaments this year and is certainly capable of surprising Dobey.

Price fared better, with first a duel against Adam Gawlas, and then Lukas Wenig or Wesley Plaisier. No softies, but also not directly players that 'The Iceman' needs to fear. A stealth player though is Ryan Joyce, who could possibly face Price in the third round. 'Relentless' is known as a player who finds the doubles very easily. Then again, if Joyce has a day where the scores leave well, he could trouble all the world's top players.

The section of the bracket where Stephen Bunting is the highest-ranked player, but that Bunting will make it through this section is by no means a foregone conclusion. 'The Bullet' starts his tournament against Sebastian Bialecki, who surprisingly won a Players Championship tournament earlier this season. Next up is possibly Richard Veenstra, who normally should have no problems with Nitin Kumar.

But Veenstra is not the only Dutchman who could face Bunting, as Dirk van Duijvenbode is his potential opponent in the last 32. And Van Duijvenbode will not be very sad about that. Bunting is perhaps the ideal opponent for "Aubergenius. Like Van Duijvenbode, he is a player with a nice pace, and also not someone who pulls strange antics on stage. Should Van Duijvenbode manage to win the 180 battle easily as usual, he would certainly stand a good chance against Bunting.

Other top players in this piece of the draw are Martin Schindler and Ryan Searle, and Searle in particular can also boast a fine World Championship record. Seven times competed, and seven times made it to at least the third round. The first two pots should normally be no problem for Searle and Schindler, making it likely that they will face each other in the last 32.

One of the most open parts of the draw. Just point to a quarterfinalist in advance here. On paper, Jonny Clayton is the favorite, but on paper darts are not. Clayton had a strong first part of the season with a final at the World Masters and winning the Dutch Darts Championship in Rosmalen. In recent weeks, however, the engine has gone klad, and 'The Ferret' seems to have to seriously fear for his participation in the Premier League. A thought that usually paralyzes the World Darts Championship.

One of the darters who could benefit is Michael Smith. The 2023 world champion has fallen far down the world rankings, but seems to be on the way back. Encouraging were his performances at the Grand Slam of Darts, where "Bullyboy" managed to reach the quarterfinals. Smith has been plagued by injury in recent years, but recently indicated that injections will allow him to play pain-free at the World Darts Championship.

Other familiar names in this stretch include Ross Smith, Dave Chisnall and Ricardo Pietreczko. The German has shown in his previous two World Championship appearances that he has no fear of the stage and made it to the last sixteen last year. Chisnall has been struggling with his form for a year and barely wins matches on television, while Ross Smith is very changeable.

By his own admission, Luke Humphries is in better shape than he was two years ago, when he managed to win almost all the majors in the fall. That form can put "Cool Hand Luke" to good use, as he is in a crafty part of the draw.

The first two rounds should still be fine to do, but after that a possible showdown with Wessel Nijman awaits. The Dutchman's potential is high, only Nijman has so far struggled to show his peak form at the majors. If all the pieces of the puzzle fall together for Nijman, he can certainly trouble Humphries. But Nijman has a tough draw himself, with first Karel Sedlacek and then possibly Gabriel Clemens or Alex Spellman.

Other contenders in this section are Nathan Aspinall and Mike De Decker. Aspinall has lost positions in the world rankings this year, but can nevertheless speak of an excellent year. He won three Euro Tour titles and made it to the final at the Players Championship Finals. From place 23, he has moved up again in recent weeks to fifteenth in the world rankings. That may not yet be enough to compete in the Premier League Darts in 2026, but the English crowd favorite can certainly make up ground with a good tournament.

Possibly 'The Asp' will then have to get past Mike De Decker in the third round. The Belgian opens his tournament against David Munyua, the first ever Kenyan competitor in Ally Pally. Great fun of course, but otherwise an excellent draw for 'The Real Deal'. Then a possible confrontation against Kevin Doets, who last year managed to surprise at the World Darts Championship by reaching the fourth round, awaits. But this draw also offers chances for the Dutchman.

With James Wade, Ricky Evans, Cameron Menzies and Gian van Veen, as well as Man Lok Leung, Cristo Reyes and Dimitri van den Bergh, there are plenty of interesting names in this section. If everything goes according to seeding, James Wade and Gian van Veen will meet in the last 16. And if we look very realistically, the chances of this prognosis becoming reality are quite significant.

Wade lost his opening match each of the past three World Championships, but Ryusei Azemoto should not normally be a threat. He then plays the winner of the duel between Evans and Leung, and it remains to be seen if Leung has brought back to London his surprisingly good level from two years ago. Menzies has made strides again this year, winning his second PDC title. Moreover, 'Cammy' also made it to the last eight at the World Grand Prix. Nevertheless, it still looks pretty shaky at the majors.

Van Veen may be the first top-10 player to achieve this position without ever having won a match at the World Darts Championship. The past two editions went wrong against the aforementioned Man Lok Leung, and Van Veen was also left empty-handed against Ricardo Pietreczko last year. With Cristo Reyes, who returns to the World Darts Championship after six years, as opponent, 'GVV The Giant' has to start right away. But in principle Van Veen should be able to reach at least the quarterfinals at this tournament.

And what can Dimitri Van den Bergh, two-time major winner and semifinalist at the World Darts Championship three years ago. Partly due to mental problems, 'The Dreammaker' had another disappointing season, although the final weeks of the Pro Tour season will have given him some hope. The pressure will be low, and perhaps the Belgian can go into the new darts year from this role with a good feeling.

As number three in the world, Michael van Gerwen starts the World Darts Championship. For the first time in years, "Mighty Mike" is no longer considered by the general public to be one of the biggest contenders, but of course he remains a lethal outsider. Not for nothing did Van Gerwen reach the final of this tournament last year.

The three-time world champion will face Mitsohiko Tatsunami, which should not be too difficult. And if Van Gerwen is in normal form, then William O'Connor or Krzysztof Kciuk will not pose a difficult obstacle in the second round either, while Peter Wright or Kim Huybrechts seem to be the main contenders to take on Van Gerwen in the third round. Two players who seem to have their best days behind them, but can still be dangerous. Wright proved that just last year by surprisingly winning over Luke Humphries at the World Darts Championship. The Scot has had two shaky years, but has no doubt that a third world title is still in him. But the only one who seems to believe in it is Wright himself.

The lower part of this section is a fun one, including Gary Anderson, Jermaine Wattimena and the eccentric Scott Williams. The latter surprisingly reached the semifinals of the World Darts Championship two seasons ago, and he will have to defend that result in the world rankings. With Wattimena in top form, there are chances for the Dutchman to have a great World Championship, but he will probably have to beat Anderson in the third round. Anderson may be the player with the highest peak, but Wattimena has shown to be more consistent than the Scot this season. And should Wattimena indeed beat Anderson, there is a good chance we will have a Dutch clash in the last 16.

After four semifinals at the majors, and even five if you count the World Cup of Darts, there is no way Danny Noppert is finally going to break his World Championship curse. In recent years, it became a recurring result. Each time it just didn't work out. But Danny Noppert 2.0 is better than ever, and with his draw, 'The Freze' owes it to his standing to make it to at least the eighth finals.

Eyes in this bit of the draw will be on Beau Greaves, the best female player in the world. She is nearly unbeatable on the women's circuit, and is starting to win more and more on the men's as well. This year, Greaves earned tournament victories on both the Challenge Tour and the Development Tour, and on top of that, the 21-year-old Englishwoman also made a fine impression in her appearances at the UK Open and the Grand Slam of Darts.

She could have had a better draw than Daryl Gurney, but the Northern Irishman will not be happy with this outcome either. 'Superchin' has been struggling with his equipment for some time, but still managed to reach two quarter-finals at the majors in the fall.

And then you also have Josh Rock and Callan Rydz in this section of the draw. Rydz made it to the quarterfinals at the World Darts Championship last year for the second time in his career, while Rock won his first television title and finally secured a spot in the world standings. With a possible invitation to the Premier League on the horizon, Rock too will be keen to perform at this World Championship.

If our predictions come true, we can get ready for a wonderful day on New Year's Day. The main question will be whether six of the eight quarter-finalists will be able to avoid the widely anticipated final between Luke Littler and Luke Humphries. In barely two years, the two Luke's have already played six major finals against each other. And the most obvious scenario is that the world's number one and two will face each other again in the World Championship final on Jan. 3.