Preview Saturday WDF World Championship at Lakeside: Jimmy van Schie and Mikuru Suzuki headline evening proceedings
WDF
The WDF World Championship kicked off with an exhilarating night of action. As the round-one action continues, former world champions return to put on a show at Lakeside.
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The number one seed will begin the second-round action late on, while a two-time world champion makes a return to the venue where she became an icon of the sport.
Saturday 29 November - Afternoon Session (12:30 GMT)
| Date/Time | Cat/Round | Player 1 | Player 2 | Result | |
| 29/11 12:30 | Men's - R1 | Caleb Hope | v | Darren Johnson | |
| 29/11 13:15 | Ladies - R1 | Joanne Hadley | v | Eve Watson | |
| 29/11 14:00 | Men's - R1 | Ben Robb | v | Johan Engstrom | |
| 29/11 14:45 | Ladies - R1 | Jitka Cisarova | v | Maud Jansson | |
| 29/11 15:30 | Men's - R2 | James Beeton | v | Dennis Nilsson |
Saturday 29 November - Evening Session (18:00 GMT)
| Date/Time | Cat/Round | Player 1 | Player 2 | Result | |
| 29/11 18:00 | Men's - R1 | Ryan Hogarth | v | Jonas Masalin | |
| 29/11 18:45 | Ladies - R1 | Kirsi Viinikainen | v | Mikuru Suzuki | |
| 29/11 19:30 | Men's - R1 | Karl Schaefer | v | Daniel Bauerdick | |
| 29/11 20:15 | Ladies - R1 | Irina Armstrong | v | Maria Carli | |
| 29/11 21:00 | Men's - R1 | Brian Raman | v | Jeffrey Sparidaans | |
| 29/11 21:45 | Men's - R2 | Jimmy van Schie | v | Alex Williams |
Caleb Hope v Darren Johnson
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Making a name for himself the other side of the world, Caleb Hope comes into the event on brilliant momentum after winning two titles on the WDF Circuit in his prior four events. The others was a final and semi-final, giving him the taste of winning. This has earned him a debut at the iconic venue, and a matchup against Darren Johnson. The 60-year-old is back for a third appearance on the spin. He will be hoping to get off the board with his first victory.
Joanne Hadley v Eve Watson
Going back Down Under but this time to Australia for another debut campaign set to commence. Joanne Hadley has won five titles this year and is ready to make an ever-lasting impact in this prestigious event. Welshwoman Eve Watson will be targeting to ruin her first appearance. She qualified as the 17th ranked player and could be a banana skin for any player.
Ben Robb v Johan Engstrom
Once a regular at Ally Pally, Ben Robb has switched the Palace for Lakeside. While he has never won a World Championship match, he will be hoping to make a big step in his darts career. He comes up against a tricky opponent in Johan Engstrom who is set to play his maiden World Championship match. It will be a first meeting between the duo.
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Jitka Cisarova v Maud Jansson
Jitka Cisarova became the first Czech darter to make a quarter-final at Lakeside. She did unfortunately fail to get any further as Beau Greaves brushed her aside but it was a very commanding run. Cisarova will be looking for a similar run. After being left out of the draw due to an error, Maud Jansso has been confirmed to return after her debut in 2024.
James Beeton v Dennis Nilsson
James Beeton was delighted after securing his first win on the Lakeside stage last year. In a return to the oche, his expectations are sky-high after a very positive 2025 campaign. He faces the first winner of this year's event, Dennis Nilsson. The Swede defeated Shane Sakchekapo 3-0 while averaging over 86. He was a semi-finalist back in 2023 before losing out to eventual champion Andy Baetens.
Ryan Hogarth v Jonas Masalin
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To kick off the evening session, Ryan Hogarth is set to make his fourth appearance. The 33-year-old Scot has never made it past the last-16. His quest for success begins against debutant Jonas Masalin. The Finnish star won an event in his home country enroute to securing his place at Lakeside.
Kirsi Viinikainen v Mikuru Suzuki
Two of the favourites for the title are set to clash in the first-round, with another tough test in Deta Hedman waiting in the wings. Kirsi Viinikainen never got her event underway last year after a 2-0 opening match defeat to Greaves. It will not get easier as the Finnish star is set to clash against a darting legend. Mikuru Suzuki is a two-time world champion after previous triumphs in 2019 and 2020. However she has not competed since 2022. It is a highly anticipated return for Suzuki.
Karl Schaefer v Daniel Bauerdick
Another player Down Under set to make their debut: Karl Schaefer clinched a title with a couple of semi-finals which gave him a commanding lead at the top of the regional table. His opponent is German Daniel Bauerdick. He endured a disappointing World Masters tournament, and will be hoping for a change of fortune.
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Irina Armstrong v Maria Carli
Between 2010-2014, Irina Armstrong made a semi-final and three quarter-finals in four appearances in that time frame. The Russian has only featured once since 2016, coming last year in a second-round exit. 10 years after her debut, Maria Carli secured a return to Lakeside after a dominant year in North America.
Brian Raman v Jeffrey Sparidaans
Another firmer quarter-finalist, Brian Raman made a run to the last-eight in the 2022 competition. He made it to the third-round last year. His opening match is against Jeffrey Sparidaans. The Dutchman first appeared in the world champs back in 2018 and has not returned since. He will be hoping for a positive return.
Jimmy van Schie v Alex Williams
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Round two action completes the night. Number one seed Jimmy van Schie goes into the event as a big favourite to take the title. He won the World Masters earlier this year and is looking to continue his steady rise in the sport with a world title. A win tonight would match his third-round appearance last year. His opponent, Alex Williams, has already had some experience this year on the oche. He came through a remarkably tight match to fend off Croation Romeo Grbavac.
Lucas MichaelDarts Journalist
Lucas Michael is a darts journalist and reporter based in Cambridge, UK, and has been part of the DartsNews team since 2025. He covers professional darts through reports, analysis, round-ups, and live coverage, with a focus on clear context and accurate reporting across the PDC calendar.
A key part of his work is liveblogging major tournaments throughout the year, providing real-time updates, match coverage, and contextual reporting across the professional circuit. He also reports regularly from events on site and has covered the PDC World Darts Championship from the venue, delivering first-hand insight throughout the tournament.
Within the newsroom, Lucas works closely with the editorial team and supports coverage alongside Chief Content Officer Samuel Gill and reporter Kieran Wood.
Lucas holds a BA (Hons) in Sports Journalism. In his work, he places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating content promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- 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
- She's technically not a professional though as she doesn't hold a pro tour card.mr-pablo04-11-2026
- Such a shame that lakeside has been reduced to this. Fantastic venue,and previously a great tournament. Not any morerick6703-11-2026
- Seems to me that the top 16 players pick and choose whatever they want to play. Good,all the money will get spread out more. They get more money from exhibitions than tournaments so let them all withdrawrick6703-11-2026
- Play all legs and the winners split the pot. Luke gets the lot of he wins them all. If your occupation is darts player you can't enter, regardless of ability.BandB01-11-2026
- I'm quite a jaded person all things considered, but to be honest I found Beat Luke Littler to be pretty entertaining. It certainly wasn't seamless, which is to be expected given the lack of precedence, but I actually think the pacing was pretty good, the production was impressive, and there was a good sense of humour and levity to it. I think it was a very ambitious undertaking but one that, for the most part, paid off. I liked the system with the four pots and I think it added to the drama and intrigue. I enjoyed seeing the diverse range of entrants and learning about their backstories. I think the interactivity was pretty clever and well-integrated. The panel was a little incoherent at times; Lee Mack shone however, and his improvisational skills were appreciated during some more awkward interstitial moments. As far as the darts is concerned, it was a shame that the format didn't allow Littler to get into full flow. You obviously don't want him to steamroll everyone but you want to feel like you're getting the full Littler package rather than seeing him struggling to get out of first gear. I will say that his leg against Jayden Walker was very impressive, but it was mostly downhill from there. The attraction revolves around Littler being this untouchable, indomitable force, yet the format doesn't really allow him to fulfil that characterisation. As for Fallon Sherrock, she was mightily impressive and deserved the victory. It is a testament to her unshakeable character that she was able to bang in a 14-darter under such mind-bending pressure. Everything that has been said about the misleading marketing is valid, though they were clear about their eligibility criteria and were able to offload the responsibility somewhat by bringing the viewers into the decision-making process in real time. What is clear though, is that Fallon played the game according to the rules, and she should not be criticised for that, much less abused. I will admit though that it is a kick in the teeth for those true amateurs who committed time and money to the course, and I would also question those who think pub players would have no chance, given that some of Littler's winning legs were dispatched in 7 visits to the board! The great thing about darts is that it isn't so much that amateurs cannot replicate the feats of brilliance pulled off by professionals of the sport, than it is that they simply cannot replicate the consistency of their output, something that this format almost entirely removes from the equation. It should also be noted that, financially, Fallon certainly stands to benefit much less in relative terms from the paycheque than would your average pub thrower, as I'm sure she nets a fair income from the lucrative exhibition circuit alone. What I do hope is that she might use this as an opportunity to really build up a head of steam heading into the new season, as it seems long overdue that she come through Q-School and really take it to the pros on a week-in week-out basis, but whatever she chooses to do, she has certainly achieved enough already for one if not several lifetimes, so who am I to dictate terms? To conclude though, I will state once again that I found Beat Luke Littler to be a pretty enjoyable evening of entertainment. I do feel for the contestants who never actually had the chance to try their luck against the world #1, although I suppose it comes with the format, but all which inevitably raises the question: will Netflix be tempted to do it all again next year? It's hard to say. Whether it would be financially viable, I can't weigh in there. One point I have been making though, and which I touched on earlier, is that the entire concept relies on a public perception that Littler is more or less unbeatable, and that certainly hasn't been the case of late. If the execs had been trying to pitch the show in recent months while Littler has seemed vulnerable, rather than when he was mopping up almost every major title on the calendar, it would certainly be a tougher sell. We will have to see in about 6 months' time whether Littler can still reliably command perception as a near-unstoppable force in darts, and then we'll have a clearer idea about whether we should expect a second helping. Even as a one-off experiment though, and with all the controversy taken into account, I still don't think they disgraced themselves by any means, and that will probably be my lingering assessment of the event when all is said and done.Deduce635801-11-2026
- Fair play to Fallon. But...shows the mockery when a professional players wins what was meant to be an amateur v Pro event, Littlers performance was poor, and what about the players who didn't get a game? Would have been better if the pot was split amoungst all the winners and they all got a leg.BandB31-10-2026
- Not even slightly interestedrick6730-10-2026
- And yet the PDC has decided to aggravate this problem by doubling the Players Championship Finals field from 2027. I can't imagine there will be fewer withdrawals next year with even less reason to turn up. I can only hope that a whole slew of Challenge Tour top-up players receive enough prize money in the absence of much of the elite, that some of the more complacent among them struggle to scrape into even a heavily diluted field! More semi-pro players will get to test their mettle, but the standard of competition will be much inferior. It could hardly be said that the Players Championship series will provide an opportunity for darts' second string to test their Tour Card credentials anymore, but at least it will underscore the achievements of those Challenge Tour players of current and previous years, who were able to prove themselves as more than capable of competing with, and beating, the elite of the sport on a consistent basis, and reaping the due rewards.Deduce635828-10-2026
- No point in being there? Champions want to win.Deduce635828-10-2026