2024/25 PADDY POWER WORLD DARTS CHAMPIONSHIP PREVIEW
The 2024/25 Paddy Power World Darts Championship gets underway at London’s Alexandra Palace on Sunday evening, as reigning champion Luke Humphries opens his defence of the title on the tournament’s opening night.
The 32nd staging of the World Darts Championship will see 96 players from around the globe competing for the coveted Sid Waddell Trophy from Sunday December 15 through to the final on Friday January 3.
The festive feast of darts will see 14 debutants and 28 countries represented in the £2.5 million showpiece, as number one seed Humphries aims to emulate Phil Taylor, Adrian Lewis and Gary Anderson by winning back-to-back titles.
Humphries ran out a 7-4 winner against Luke Littler in a record-breaking final back in January, in a contest watched by a staggering audience of 4.8 million viewers – the highest ever non-football peak in Sky Sports history.
The 29-year-old has enjoyed a terrific 2024 season, lifting maiden World Cup of Darts and World Matchplay titles, before retaining his Players Championship Finals crown in Minehead last month.
Humphries would also become the first player in PDC history to reach £2m on the two-year Order of Merit system if he clinches back-to-back World Championship titles on January 3, and he kicks off his campaign against Thibault Tricole or Joe Comito.
“I’m quite proud of the way I’ve handled myself as the World Champion,” insisted Humphries, also a UK Open, Premier League and World Grand Prix runner-up in 2024.
“For me, it’s been the most amazing year, but it’s a year you want to go and do again next year.
“I know what it feels like to be a World Champion now, and that makes me dangerous, because there’s nothing left for me to prove.
“I feel like I’ve got another 20 years left at the top level hopefully, and now I’m setting my goals on trying to win as many World Championship titles as I can.”
The pre-Christmas period at this year’s World Championship will feature nine days of first and second round action from December 15-23.
The top 32 players from the PDC Order of Merit will enter the tournament at the second round stage, with the ProTour Order of Merit Qualifiers and International Representatives starting in the first round.
Frenchman Tricole and Australian qualifier Comito open the event on Sunday, before European Championship finalist Jermaine Wattimena plays Swiss debutant Stefan Bellmont and Belgium’s Kim Huybrechts faces Irish youngster Keane Barry.
The first double session at this year’s World Darts Championship will take place on Monday December 16, as 2020/21 World Champion Gerwyn Price meets either Huybrechts or Barry in the day’s stand-out tie.
Four-time semi-finalist James Wade will take centre stage on Monday afternoon, with Wattimena or Bellmont awaiting the left-hander in round two.
Two-time World Champion Peter Wright and World Grand Prix winner Mike De Decker enter the fray on Day Three, while Fallon Sherrock – featuring in her fifth World Darts Championship – goes head-to-head with Ryan Meikle on Tuesday December 17.
Nathan Aspinall – a two-time World Championship semi-finalist – plays either Cameron Menzies or Leonard Gates on Wednesday December 18, with 2022/23 World Champion Michael Smith getting his campaign underway on Thursday December 19.
Smith created global headlines with his sensational success almost two years ago, producing an incredible nine-darter in a leg dubbed ‘the greatest of all-time’ on his way to a 7-4 success against Michael van Gerwen.
“This is the pinnacle,” insisted second seed Smith, who will be defending £500,000 in prize money at this year’s showpiece.
“This is what you work all year for – from January 4 leading up to December 15 – this is what everyone wants, and what everyone wants to win!
“Darts is only getting bigger, and to be at the front of that as a former World Champion is a nice feeling, but I don’t want to be a former World Champion anymore!
“I want to get my World Championship back and I want to be a defending champion again!”
Masters champion Stephen Bunting will take the spotlight on the afternoon of Friday December 20, before Dutch superstar Van Gerwen opens his challenge for a fourth World Championship crown.
Van Gerwen has won more titles at Alexandra Palace than any player in this year’s field, and is confident of putting an underwhelming run of form behind him on his return to the capital.
“It’s the biggest tournament of the year. Everyone is looking forward to it, especially me,” declared the world number three, who faces debutant James Hurrell or Canadian veteran Jim Long in his second round tie.
“I don’t have to deny that my recent results are not what I wished for, but you need to make sure all your focus goes in the right direction.
“There is a lot at stake for everyone – the World Championship is bigger than ever, so I need to make sure I’m ready for it.
“This tournament provides a different emotion, different pressure, different vibe. Everything is different because it’s the most important tournament of the year, so it should be different!”
The first round action draws to a close on Saturday December 21, on a day where five-time World Champion Raymond van Barneveld, world number nine Damon Heta, two-time quarter-finalist Chris Dobey and teenage sensation Luke Littler also feature in a star-studded double session.
Fourth seed Littler – a runner-up on debut last year – makes his World Championship return against either Meikle or Sherrock, fresh from his record-breaking exploits 12 months ago.
Littler was a 66/1 outsider for World Championship glory this time last year, but a testament to his meteoric rise since means that he makes his return to the capital as the outright favourite this time around.
“I feel I’ve definitely improved as a player,” insisted Littler, who has won ten PDC titles in 2024, including the Premier League, Grand Slam of Darts and World Series of Darts Finals.
“The confidence is there from playing on all these different stages, but this is the one that everyone wants to win.
“I will take it game by game like I did last year, but any player can turn up and produce against me, so I know I must be on my A-game.
“The last year has flown by! There’s been plenty of darts this year, but now it’s all focus on the big one!”
UK Open champion Dimitri Van den Bergh and European Champion Ritchie Edhouse will headline the action on Sunday December 22, as Scottish icon Gary Anderson gets his title tilt underway on his 54th birthday.
Two-time World Champion Anderson has been one of the sport’s stand-out performers in 2024, winning a hat-trick of ranking titles and boasting a seasonal average of 99.86 – the highest out of all 128 Tour Card Holders.
“I probably am playing better than ever,” admitted Anderson, a semi-finalist at last month’s Grand Slam of Darts.
“The World Championship at Ally Pally is what every dart player aims for. It’s an iconic building and it’s perfectly suited for the World Championship.
“Driving up that hill and seeing the Palace up there, it is some feeling. That’s when the stomach starts to churn, and I’ve done it for many years, so imagine the feeling for a first-timer coming up that hill!
“I’m not on stage as much nowadays, but it’s coming good. If my floor game goes on to the stage every game, it would be looking good, but whether that happens is a completely different story.”
The second round will conclude across two sessions on Saturday December 23, with 2017/18 World Champion Rob Cross completing the pre-Christmas action against Scott Williams or Niko Springer.
2020/21 semi-finalist Dave Chisnall, seventh seed Jonny Clayton and newly-crowned World Youth Champion Gian van Veen will also take to the stage on Saturday, as the third-round line-up is confirmed.
Following a three-day Christmas break, the third and fourth rounds will be held from December 27-30, with the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final taking place from January 1-3.
Alongside the £500,000 top prize for the eventual champion, players will also be competing for the Ballon d’Art trophy – created by title sponsor Paddy Power for the player who hits the most 180s during the event.
The award – won by Humphries last year – is an addition to The BIGGER 180 Campaign, which will again see Paddy Power donate £1,000 to Prostate Cancer UK for every maximum scored during the 2024/25 World Darts Championship.
In addition, a £180,000 bonus will be paid out for every nine-darter achieved during the tournament, to be split equally with £60,000 each to Prostate Cancer UK, the player who hits the perfect leg and one lucky fan in the crowd.
This year’s donation is expected to exceed the £1million raised by Paddy Power in 2023/24, and funds will support Prostate Cancer UK’s TRANSFORM trial, a ground-breaking research project that will find the best way to diagnose prostate cancer early and pave the way for a national screening programme.
The Paddy Power World Darts Championship will be broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK, through the PDC’s worldwide broadcast partners including DAZN and Viaplay, and on PDCTV (excluding UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria & Switzerland based subscribers).
2024/25 Paddy Power World Darts Championship
Sunday December 15 (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
Thibault Tricole v Joe Comito (R1)
Jermaine Wattimena v Stefan Bellmont (R1)
Kim Huybrechts v Keane Barry (R1)
Luke Humphries v Tricole/Comito (R2)
Monday December 16
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
Wesley Plaisier v Ryusei Azemoto (R1)
Luke Woodhouse v Lourence Ilagan (R1)
Alan Soutar v Kai Gotthardt (R1)
James Wade v Wattimena/Bellmont (R2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
Niels Zonneveld v Robert Owen (R1)
Connor Scutt v Ben Robb (R1)
Cameron Menzies v Leonard Gates (R1)
Gerwyn Price v Huybrechts/Barry (R2)
Tuesday December 17
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
James Hurrell v Jim Long (R1)
Kevin Doets v Noa-Lynn van Leuven (R1)
Ryan Joyce v Darius Labanauskas (R1)
Mike De Decker v Woodhouse/Ilagan (R2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
Jeffrey de Graaf v Rashad Sweeting (R1)
Ricardo Pietreczko v Xiaochen Zong (R1)
Ryan Meikle v Fallon Sherrock (R1)
Peter Wright v Plaisier/Azemoto (R2)
Wednesday December 18 (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
Jim Williams v Paolo Nebrida (R1)
Madars Razma v Christian Kist (R1)
Ricky Evans v Gordon Mathers (R1)
Nathan Aspinall v Menzies/Gates (R2)
Thursday December 19
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
Chris Landman v Lok Yin Lee (R1)
Callan Rydz v Romeo Grbavac (R1)
Martin Lukeman v Nitin Kumar (R1)
Gabriel Clemens v Zonneveld/Owen (R2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
Nick Kenny v Stowe Buntz (R1)
Mensur Suljovic v Matt Campbell (R1)
Scott Williams v Niko Springer (R1)
Michael Smith v Doets/Van Leuven (R2)
Friday December 20
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
Stephen Burton v Alexander Merkx (R1)
Wessel Nijman v Cameron Carolissen (R1)
Ian White v Sandro Eric Sosing (R1)
Stephen Bunting v Soutar/Gotthardt (R2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
Mickey Mansell v Tomoya Goto (R1)
Florian Hempel v Jeffrey De Zwaan (R1)
William O’Connor v Dylan Slevin (R1)
Michael van Gerwen v Hurrell/Long (R2)
Saturday December 21
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
2x First Round, 2x Second Round
Karel Sedlacek v Rhys Griffin (R1)
Richard Veenstra v Alexis Toylo (R1)
Brendan Dolan v Landman/Lee (R2)
Chris Dobey v Burton/Merkx (R2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
4x Second Round
Danny Noppert v Joyce/Labanauskas (R2)
Raymond van Barneveld v Kenny/Buntz (R2)
Luke Littler v Meikle/Sherrock (R2)
Damon Heta v Scutt/Robb (R2)
Sunday December 22
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
4x Second Round
Ryan Searle v Suljovic/Campbell (R2)
Dirk van Duijvenbode v Razma/Kist (R2)
Joe Cullen v Nijman/Carolissen (R2)
Ritchie Edhouse v White/Sosing (R2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
4x Second Round
Martin Schindler v Rydz/Grbavac (R2)
Ross Smith v J Williams/Nebrida (R2)
Gary Anderson v De Graaf/Sweeting (R2)
Dimitri Van den Bergh v O’Connor/Slevin (R2)
Monday December 23
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
4x Second Round
Krzysztof Ratajski v Veenstra/Toylo (R2)
Andrew Gilding v Lukeman/Kumar (R2)
Josh Rock v Sedlacek/Griffin (R2)
Jonny Clayton v Mansell/Goto (R2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
4x Second Round
Gian van Veen v Pietreczko/Zong (R2)
Daryl Gurney v Hempel/De Zwaan (R2)
Dave Chisnall v Evans/Mathers (R2)
Rob Cross v S Williams/Springer (R2)
Friday December 27
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x Third Round
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x Third Round
Saturday December 28
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x Third Round
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x Third Round
Sunday December 29
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x Third Round
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
1x Third Round, 2x Fourth Round
Monday December 30
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x Fourth Round
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x Fourth Round
Wednesday January 1
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
2x Quarter-Finals
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
2x Quarter-Finals
Thursday January 2 (1930 GMT)
Semi-Finals
Friday January 3 (2000 GMT)
Final
The schedule of play for the third round onwards to be confirmed at pdc.tv and on OfficialPDC social media channels throughout the event.
Format
First Round – Best of five sets
Second Round – Best of five sets
Third Round – Best of seven sets
Fourth Round – Best of seven sets
Quarter-Finals – Best of nine sets
Semi-Finals – Best of 11 sets
Final – Best of 13 sets
Tie-Breaks
First Round matches will not have a tie-break; if the fifth set reaches two-all in legs, then the fifth leg will be sudden-death.
From the Second Round onwards, there will be a tie-break rule employed in all matches; where a deciding set must be won by two clear legs. If the score in the final set reaches 5-5 then a sudden-death leg will be played.
There would be no throw for the bull in any sudden-death legs.
Prize Fund
Winner – £500,000
Runner-Up – £200,000
Semi-Finalists – £100,000
Quarter-Finalists – £50,000
Fourth Round – £35,000
Third Round – £25,000
Second Round – £15,000
First Round – £7,500
Total – £2,500,000
——-ENDS——
Images: T Lanning / PDC
