Scouting the opposition for Martin Schindler and Niko Springer – How strong are Germany’s chances at the 2026 World Matchplay?

As in each of the past four years, two German players will once again line up at the World Matchplay in Blackpool this summer. The second-biggest PDC tournament of the year ranks among the sport’s most prestigious events. Even though Germany’s record still leaves plenty of room for improvement and the most recent German win dates back to 2020, hopes rest on Martin Schindler and Niko Springer.

The tournament traditionally opens on Saturday with defending champion Luke Littler. For Niko Springer, it will be a very special debut. The German faces the world number one in his first appearance. With a record prize fund of one million pounds, the World Matchplay has more allure than ever. The winner receives £225,000, and every participant takes home at least £12,500.

For the man from Siefersheim, his second year with a Tour Card brings his first trip to the legendary Winter Gardens in Blackpool. Springer and Littler have met only once so far. At Players Championship 5 in 2025, Littler won 6-5 with a 102 average. Even Springer’s 105 average wasn’t enough for victory that day.

Since then, however, Springer has gained further vital experience. He has already played on the sport’s biggest stages at the Grand Slam of Darts, the World Darts Championship, and the World Grand Prix.

The World Championship, however, also exposed a weakness. As an underdog, Springer often plays with freedom. At the Grand Slam he beat Michael van Gerwen and Gary Anderson. At the World Championship, by contrast, he crumbled under the pressure of favoritism and suffered a surprise 1-3 defeat to Joe Comito.

By his own account, that loss plunged the 26-year-old into a deep hole. He has since stabilized and is consistently producing strong displays. A good example came last weekend at the European Darts Open in Leverkusen. After a short holiday break and skipping the latest Players Championships, he returned in style with a 105 average against Darius Labanauskas.

The subsequent match against Gian van Veen was also strong in terms of performance. Springer averaged 102 but squandered too many chances at key moments. That is currently his biggest weakness.

The numbers from the past three months still paint a positive picture: his average now sits at a strong 92.78, putting him back within reach of the world’s top 32. However, the 37.36 percent checkout rate shows where there is still room for improvement. His scoring has been at a top level for months, but he cannot always rely on the doubles.

There is another issue. Springer often struggles to settle early in matches. Against Gian van Veen, for example, he trailed 0-3 and 1-4. In a best-of-11 legs contest, a comeback against world-class opposition is extremely difficult. Over longer formats, however, his ability to rally could help him even more in future.

This is exactly where the toughest task of all awaits. Luke Littler last lost a longer-format match in October 2025 in Dortmund, when he fell to James Wade. Before that, he had only been beaten at a ranking major by Jonny Clayton in January 2025, despite averaging 108. To beat Littler, you need an almost perfect game.

Last year, “The Nuke” won the World Matchplay with averages of 103, 107, and 107 in his final three matches. He had already posted a 108.92 average in round one against Ryan Searle. Jermaine Wattimena, Andrew Gilding, and Josh Rock pushed him to his limits, but Littler ultimately prevailed 18-13 over James Wade in the final. On the biggest stages, the world champion often looks almost untouchable.

Interestingly, Littler does not always start well either. In both the semi-final and the final last year, he trailed 0-5. He still turned both matches around in style. His tournament average of 105.12 was the fifth-best ever by a World Matchplay winner. Only Phil Taylor managed slightly better in 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2013.

Over the past three months, Littler’s average has dipped just below the 100 mark to 99.27 for the first time in a while. His checkout rate has also dropped to around 40 percent. However, the Englishman has played only a few events in this period. In the last three months he has contested just 22 matches, not counting the World Cup. His current form is therefore hard to gauge. By the World Matchplay, though, Littler should be firing on all cylinders again.

If Niko Springer is to topple the world number one, he above all needs a fast start. He must take every chance ruthlessly and keep his excellent scoring going for the entire match. Only then does the Siefersheim native have a realistic shot at a major upset.

Martin Schindler has been hard to read in 2026 so far. Strong displays are regularly followed by weaker ones. As a result, the question marks around Germany’s number one keep growing. His former greatest strength, consistency, is currently barely there.

While Schindler posted the best numbers of all 80 participants at the World Cup of Darts, the next setback followed on Saturday at the European Darts Open. In the 3-6 defeat to Kevin Doets, he averaged under 80, his worst mark on the European Tour in over 10 years. That also meant a failed dress rehearsal for the World Matchplay.

Schindler is now on a five-match losing streak. Since the World Cup he has managed only two wins at the Players Championships – against Tytus Kanik and Cor Dekker. On top of that, Blackpool has not been a happy hunting ground for the German so far. In his three previous appearances he has not won a single match.

So Schindler did not carry over the momentum from the World Cup. The opening phase against Kevin Doets was particularly alarming. He did improve afterwards, but he still had no chance against the Dutchman.

The other performances, however, were not that poor. At Players Championship 22 he exited in round three despite a 108 average. At the last Players Championship, even a 97 average against Connor Scutt in round one was not enough for a win.

The raw numbers even look decent overall. Over the past three months, Schindler has averaged over 93 with a checkout rate of around 36 percent. What stands out, though, is the markedly reduced win rate. While he won 64 percent of his PDC matches in 2025, that figure is only 46 percent in 2026.

He has also slipped away from the top 16 in the world rankings again. In the one-year Order of Merit, Schindler is currently only 34th and is even level there with Niko Springer. Above all, that shows one thing: the man from Rodgau is winning his tight matches too rarely at the moment.

When Schindler plays great, he often still loses. He averaged 108 this year against both Gian van Veen and Michael van Gerwen and still came up short. When he faces nominally weaker opponents, he often drops to their level. That makes it hard to predict which version of Martin Schindler will show up in Blackpool.

Gerwyn Price also awaits as an opponent who brings his own question marks. After a strong 2025 and a return to the top 8, the Welshman has been seen far less on tour in 2026. Assessing his current form is correspondingly tricky. The two already met at Schindler’s Blackpool debut. Back then, the Welshman edged a long even contest 10-8. Up to 7-7 the duel was on a knife-edge, before Price landed the decisive break with an 11-darter. He sealed the win shortly after with a 91 checkout.

At Players Championship 23, Price lost in round one to Harry Ward. On the European Tour, he has hardly featured since his title in Sindelfingen. Only an opening defeat at the Slovak Darts Open against Cameron Menzies was added. At the US Darts Masters he went out in the quarterfinals to James Wade. Since his Premier League semifinal run at the end of May, the 41-year-old has played very little. He also withdrew from the World Cup of Darts.

Even so, the numbers still favor the Welshman. Over the past three months, Price has averaged 98.14. However, his doubling rate has dropped significantly to just 39 percent. Last year he reached the World Matchplay quarterfinals, losing 11-16 to Luke Littler. Price has never won the Blackpool title. He came closest in 2022, when he lost the final to Michael van Gerwen.

This clash is therefore also hard to call. Gerwyn Price naturally goes in as the favorite. But that could play into Schindler’s hands. Without heavy expectations, Germany’s number one has often produced his best performances in the past.