Preview third quarter at 2025 PDC World Darts Championship: Who gets through in the most open part of the draw?

The festive season is almost upon us, and with it comes the blue ribboned event of the darts calendar: the PDC World Darts Championship. Starting on December 15th and running until January 3rd, the moment we’ve all been waiting for is now just around the corner, promising the three best weeks of the year for darts fans.

Some fans will already be making plans to head to London’s iconic Alexandra Palace, which has been the championship’s home since 2008. Last year, Luke Humphries secured his status as the world’s best darts player by clinching his first World Championship title. "Cool Hand" has since had a phenomenal year since, collecting several other major titles along the way. However, the 2024 tournament is perhaps best remembered for the remarkable debut of 16-year-old Luke Littler. Virtually unknown before the competition, "The Nuke" became a cult hero over last year’s festive period, and has since become one of Britain’s most recognisable young athletes. At just 17, could he pick up his first world title already?

With the draw announced last week, attention now turns to the second-round matchups. The tournament features 96 players in a knockout format, starting with a preliminary round where qualifiers from regional tours and events compete, and the top 32 players from the PDC Order of Merit are seeded directly into the second round. As the tournament progresses, match lengths increase from best-of-5 sets in the opening rounds to an epic best-of-13 sets in the final.

There’s a lot of money up for grabs too, with a total prize pool of £2,500,000 on offer. The eventual champion will take home a life-changing £500,000, while even second-round losers will walk away with £15,000. With so much on the line, let’s dive into the third quarter of the 2025 PDC World Darts Championship and see who kicks off their campaign here.

Michael Smith, the 2023 world champion and current number 2 seed, will look to begin his campaign in commanding fashion. Smith’s crowning moment came when he defeated Michael van Gerwen 7-4 in the 2023 final, avenging his world championship loss to MvG from 2019. However, since that triumph, the 34-year-old has struggled to replicate his winning form on the biggest stages, and he’ll need to show more than he has recently to make a deep run.

Smith was runner-up at this year’s World Series of Darts Finals, losing to Luke Littler, and reached the semi-finals of the World Matchplay. Last year, he was eliminated in the fourth round by Chris Dobey, but his best game remains a threat to anyone in the field, and Smith will be heavily favoured to advance from his second-round matchup.

Kevin Doets and Noa-Lynn van Leuven will battle it out in the first round for the chance to face Smith. Doets, a solid competitor, made it to the World Series Finals last 16 this year and was eliminated by Smith in last year’s World Championship second round. Van Leuven, meanwhile, made history last month as the first trans woman to compete at the Grand Slam of Darts, in WolverhamptonAlthough she didn’t progress beyond the group stage, her appearance marked a significant moment for darts. Making her World Championship debut, van Leuven will look to make further history, though she faces an uphill battle if she wishes to progress.

Gerwyn Price, the 2021 world champion and three-time Grand Slam of Darts winner, enters the world championships as the 10th seed. While his achievements are undeniable, the Welshman has not been at his best for some time, and has failed to progress beyond the quarter-finals at the World Championship since his victory in 2021. Last year, Price was upset in the third round by Brendan Dolan, and his recent performances have fallen short of the standards he set just 3 or 4 years ago. His last major final appearance was at the 2023 World Grand Prix, and he’s certainly going through a challenging period in his career.

Price’s potential opponents, Kim Huybrechts and Keane Barry, each bring their own ambitions to the table. Huybrechts, a 39-year-old from Antwerp, reached the World Championship quarter-finals all the way back in 2012 but has been relatively quiet on the big stage in recent years. Barry, on the other hand, is one of the younger players in the field, even if he is still 5 years older than Littler! The 22-year-old from Duleek famously defeated James Wade in the 2022 UK Open and has the potential to cause an upset if he’s on his A game.

Chris Dobey, the 15th seed, will hope to regain his form as he heads into the World Championship. The 34-year-old has been a consistent performer at Alexandra Palace, reaching the quarter-finals in both 2023 and 2024, but Dobey’s recent performances have been below par, and he’ll need to elevate his game if he hopes to make a strong run this year.

His potential opponents are Stephen Burton, from Ipswich, and Alexander Merkx, who is making his World Championship debut. Burton has not competed at the tournament since 2019, where he lost in the first round to Ryan Searle. This year, he’s showed glimpses of form, reaching the second round of the UK Open and Players Championship Finals, whilst Merkx will be an unknown quantity for most viewers, but could he pull off an early upset?

Jonny Clayton, the seventh seed, will once again go to Alexandra Palace looking to add to his title, which include the World Grand Prix, Premier League, Masters, and World Series of Darts Finals, many of which come from his incredible 2021 season. However, the Welshman’s record at the World Championship has been less impressive, with Clayton yet to advance past the quarter-finals. Last year, he was comprehensively beaten 4-0 by Rob Cross in the fourth round, and he’ll be hoping this will finally be the year he can show his best form in London.

Clayton’s second-round opponent will be either Mickey Mansell or Tomoya Goto. Mansell enjoyed a career-best run to the semi-finals of the Grand Slam of Darts last month, falling only to Martin Lukeman in the semi-finals. The 50-year-old has never been past the second round at the World Championship, but his recent form suggests he could provide a challenge. Goto, a Japanese player returning to the tournament for the second time, earned his spot through the PDC Asian Tour Order of Merit.

Daryl Gurney, the 26th seed, is a former World Grand Prix winner and a two-time World Championship quarter-finalist. The Northern Irishman, now 37, has struggled for consistency in recent seasons, but his pedigree and experience make him a dangerous player on his day. Gurney’s most recent deep run at Alexandra Palace came in 2021, where he narrowly lost a dramatic quarter-final match to that year’s eventual winner, Gerwyn Price.

Florian Hempel is a former professional handball player from Germany, and he will face Jeffrey de Zwaan in the opening round. Hempel has competed in the World Championship three times before, while de Zwaan returns to Alexandra Palace for the first time since 2021. Both players are looking to re-establish themselves on the big stage, and their first round match up could be one to watch.

Michael Smith (2) v Kevin Doets or Noa-Lynn van Leuven

Krzysztof Ratajski (31) v Richard Veenstra or Alexis Toylo

Chris Dobey (15) v Stephen Burton or Alexander Merkx

Josh Rock (18) v Karel Sedlacek or Rhys Griffin

Jonny Clayton (7) v Mickey Mansell or Tomoya Goto

Daryl Gurney (26) v Florian Hempel or Jeffrey de Zwaan

Gerwyn Price (10) v Kim Huybrechts or Keane Barry

Joe Cullen (23) v Wessel Nijman or Cameron Carolissen