On December 15, the World Darts Championship will begin at the Alexandra Palace. The field of participants consists of 96 players, including four Belgian participants. Never before have so many Belgians participated in the same edition of the World Darts Championship.
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Dimitri van den Bergh and Kim Huybrechts are the two Belgians who have secured seeded status for the World Darts Championship. Mikede Decker and Mario Vandenbogaerde qualified through the Pro Tour.
Mario Vandenbogaerde
Mario Vandenbogaerde managed to ensure his debut at both the World Darts Championship and the Players Championship Finals with a solid season on the Pro Tour. In Minehead, he managed to beat compatriot Mike de Decker in the first round. Vandenbogaerde needs a victory in the Alexandra Palace to be sure of retaining his Tour Card. If he loses his first match, he is dependent on the results of other players. In his first match he will face Thibault Tricole, the first Frenchman ever to qualify for the World Darts Championship.
Mike de Decker
Mike de Decker reached his first ranking final at Players Championship 11. De Decker also reached two semifinals this year on the Pro Tour. With these results, he managed to force his debut for the World Matchplay and the World Grand Prix, however, he lost to Joe Cullen in the first round at both tournaments. At the Hungarian Darts Open in September, De Decker reached his first-quarter final on the Euro Tour. De Decker will play in the first round against German Dragutin Horvat.
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Kim Huybrechts (31)
Kim Huybrechts managed to beat Peter Wright at the last edition of the World Darts Championship and reached the last 16, where he lost 4-0 to Dimitri van den Bergh. This season, he and Van den Bergh reached the semifinals of the World Cup of Darts. In addition, Huybrechts managed to secure his first ranking title since 2015 at the third Players Championship of the year. Recently, Huybrechts also showed good form when he eliminated Gerwyn Price in the second round of the Players Championship Finals.
Dimitri van den Bergh(15)
In early 2023 Dimitri van den Bergh reached the semifinals at the World Darts Championship, the UK Open and the World Cup of Darts. Since then, the former World Matchplay champion has shown erratic form at both televised tournaments and on the Pro Tour. Van den Bergh does, however, have a relatively good record at the World Darts Championship, with the semifinal at the previous edition and quarterfinal finishes in 2020 and 2018.
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Kieran WoodDarts Journalist
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He contributes to DartsNews.com, where he covers professional darts through news, match reports, analysis, and live coverage across the PDC calendar and major tournaments.
A key part of his work is on-site reporting from leading events. Kieran has covered the PDC World Darts Championship in person, reporting daily from the venue and providing first-hand insight from the tournament. During his coverage, he has conducted interviews with leading players including Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, and Gerwyn Price.
He is also one of the leading voices of the English-language Dartsnews Podcast, contributing regular analysis and discussion on developments across the professional darts circuit.
In his reporting, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles when new, verified information becomes available.
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- He produced some impressive numbers in that qualifying campaign. I'm excited to see him compete at the World Championship once again, even if it will be difficult to replicate last year's success even with an improved performance, with the draw playing a huge role in determining his fortunes.Deduce635811-11-2026
- I often think about this very question. I think they should revive the format. They could even invite representatives from MODUS Super Series, with four series winners from the past year, and the ADC, with finalists from the Global Championship and perhaps other events. Why not throw in eligible representatives from the JDC and even the soft-tip game too?Deduce635811-11-2026
- So what if littler missed out, he doesnt have to enter everythingant10-11-2026
- Good, absolutely no loss if we never see this dancing goof ever again......no that is not fair. He absolutely cannot and has never been remotely able to dance!richieburnettrocks10-11-2026
- Yes Phil,now the money in the game is bigger than ever,you'd play littler. Well so would I! Retire on your memory Phil,and your successful careerrick6709-11-2026
- And why should he listen to you?Deduce635807-11-2026
- Ultimately it is a bye for whoever draws Barney. It will be another stroppy and sulky performance once he goes behind. Barney was excellent but really must completely call it a day now.richieburnettrocks07-11-2026
- I'm disappointed he was not able to secure a spot at the Grand Slam. With Carl Sneyd taking care of Daryl Gurney, he would have had to beat Andy Boulton before facing the winner of Sneyd vs Mensur Suljović for a Grand Slam spot. Unfortunately, after beating Filip Bereza comfortably, he succumbed to Boulton, and the board would ultimately be won by the highly inconsistent Carl Sneyd. Since he could instead have been drawn against the likes of Cristo Reyes, Dirk van Duijvenbode and Stephen Bunting, I think once Gurney was out of the picture he would have been favourite to win his board, and it seems like a massive missed opportunity to put 5 grand on his ranking and seal another major TV appearance ahead of the Worlds. The highs and lows of following Raymond van Barneveld!Deduce635806-11-2026
- Probably i will receive a lot of backlash and hate for this reaction, but well, so be it. I am more than sick and tired of those lies of you Barry Hearn. How dare you defend yourself over the back of Fallon’s son! He has a disability and not an illness, so let me correct that for you! I know because I have the exact same disability. I have tried to reach out to Fallon in the past, and offered her to help her and her son, because I was struggling with the same problems, and I understood the boy. I wanted him to have finally someone who understood him. However she told me that she did not want my help, and I have respected Fallon’s choice. I have never asked Fallon for money. They don’t need money in that case. I only ever wanted the best for Fallon and Rory, but I have to be honest about the situation. Fallon should tell the true story and not be forced to tell lies. I don’t hate Fallon, and I don’t begrudge or envy a single penny that she gets, but this situation/case is just not fair. I hate the lies and the dishonesty and injustice. I don’t want Fallon to be hated because there is an unfair disadvantage created. Don’t proclaim your false lies over the back of Rory! I only stand for integrity and justice. I am precisely the one who always sticks up for Fallon. And you don't, you don't give a damn about them. You were never there for them, and now you only want to save your own position! You are just trying to talk your way out of your own bad behavior at the expense of someone with a disability. And to Fallon, I don’t know if this may ever reach you, and you read it, but I want you to know I love you and I love your son Rory very much, I am sorry how things developed and went. I hope you and Harriet are still friends. I am sorry if I were too persistent to you, or you experienced it that way, but it was never my intention. Please understand I have autism as well. As Barry Hearn would say, I am only just a human being too, and I also make mistakes and misjudge things sometimes. I promise you I did everything out of the deepest love and care for you and Rory. If I were you, I should just keep all the money, only please never be dishonest or tell lies anymore for Barry Hearn, or anyone else. I hope you have the best life, and I wish nothing more than the best for you. I have always loved the two of you. Farewell.Hiddo05-11-2026
- She is a professional. If darts is her income, she is a professional. Same as Adrian Lewis, Martin Adams. A tour card just means someone can play on the PDC tour. You could even make a case that Clayton wasn't a professional (until recently I believe) because he had employment elsewhere.BandB04-11-2026