PDC World Darts Championship 2026: Betting tips, preview and predictions for the Sky Sports-televised major at the Ally Pally

Darts betting tips: PDC World Championship

2pts Luke Littler to hit a nine-darter in the tournament at 4/1 (Sky Bet)

2pts e.w. Gian van Veen to win the World Championship at 16/1 (Coral, Ladbrokes 1/2, 1,2)

1pts e.w. Danny Noppert to win the World Championship at 50/1 (General 1/2, 1,2)

1pt Ross Smith to win the second quarter at 7/1 (General)

1pt Wessel Nijman to reach the quarter-finals at 11/1 (Sky Bet)

1pt three or more nine-darters in the tournament at 100/30 (Paddy Power, Sky Bet)

Sky Bet odds | Paddy Power | Betfair Sportsbook

Dartmas is finally here again after another unforgettable 12 months in which the sport has continued to soar to new heights thanks largely to the exploits of its superstar teenager.

Almost 12 months on from being crowned the youngest ever world champion, Luke Littler has added a further five major titles to his career tally which now remarkably stands at nine, putting him fourth on the all-time list behind Phil Taylor (79), Michael van Gerwen (48) and James Wade (11).

On top of all that, he leapfrogged Luke Humphries at the top of the rankings in style at the Grand Slam of Darts last month to become the youngest world number one in history - and you just have to wonder how many years he'll stay there. Especially if he pockets the first ever £1million winner's cheque on January 3.

WATCH OUR WORLD DARTS CHAMPIONSHIP PREVIEW

Chris Hammer, Paul Nicholson and Abigail Davies join host Dom Newton to unpick the draw and predict the outcome of the PDC World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace, under way on Thursday

It's not just the amount of titles he's hoovering up, it's the manner of it all. Apart from the double-start World Grand Prix, he's won all his major titles with tournament averages over 100 and when he's not been battering his opponents, he's also shown tremendous character to overturn big deficits like we saw in 'that' World Matchplay contest against Josh Rock.

You could compare this kind of dominance with what we saw in the eras of Phil Taylor and a prime Michael van Gerwen. Although he's not yet hitting quite the same kind of record-breaking stats that the legendary pair managed to reach in their respective heydays, he holds a similar kind of aura over the chasing pack and has already developed that air of invincibility no matter who he plays.

Now obviously this season hasn't just been about Littler - as demonstrated by the fact there have been 26 different winners across the main PDC Tour - and there's going to be a lot of players believing they can light up the Ally Pally and enjoy a career-changing run over the Festive period.

I'll try my best to identify those as we look at each section of the mammoth, 128-player draw, quarter-by-quarter...

ALSO WATCH: PREDICTING EVERY MATCH AT THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

QUARTER ONE

• (1) Luke Littler v Darius Labanauskas
• Mario Vandenbogaerde v David Davies
• (32) Joe Cullen v Bradley Brooks
• Mensur Suljojvic v David Cameron
• (16) Damon Heta v Steve Lennon
• Raymond van Barneveld v Stefan Bellmont
• (17) Rob Cross v Cor Dekker
• Ian White v Mervyn King
• (8) Chris Dobey v Xiaochen Zong
• Andrew Gilding v Cam Crabtree
• (25) Luke Woodhouse v Boris Krcmar
• Martin Lukeman v Max Hopp
• (9) Gerwyn Price v Adam Gawlas
• Lukas Wenig v Wesley Plaisier
• (24) Ryan Joyce v Owen Bates
• Krzysztof Ratajski v Alexis Toylo

Odds to win the quarter: Littler 1/3, Gerwyn Price 11/2, Dobey 12/1, Cross 28/1, 40/1 bar

I'd never want to brand any quarter of a World Championship draw a foregone conclusion but you wouldn't blame anyone for thinking this one is.

Having avoided the two players he said he didn't want to face - Beau Greaves and 71-year-old Paul Lim - LUKE LITTLER has been given a relatively kind draw in his pursuit to become just the fourth player in history to win back-to-back world titles.

No disrespect to the other three seeds in the top half of this section - Damon Heta, Joe Cullen and Rob Cross - but none of them have been playing near to the standard required to take out Littler in what would be a best-of-seven sets if there paths were to cross.

Like any top player, the Nuke is most vulnerable in the best-of-11 legs format seen in the Pro Tour but when we get to the best-of-19 legs format or longer on the big stages, it becomes increasingly difficult for anyone to either stay with him or hold onto a lead.

Sure, set play is considered to be a bit more of a leveller but you also need an incredible amount of mental strength to close out those crucial set-winning legs when you get a chance - and the pressure cranks up even further against a formidable opponent like Littler.

He's won 58 sets at the Ally Pally and dropped just 24 - and seven of those came in the 2024 final against Humphries.

Apart from that, only Ryan Joyce in the fourth round last year got close to him before losing a deciding set 3-1.

The first time Littler will come up against a 'big gun' who is much more capable of giving him a tough test won't be until the quarter-finals when the format increases to best-of-nine sets and at that point it requires some kind of herculean effort to stop him.

Gerwyn Price would fancy his chances if he's got that far and he does obviously have the ability and big-stage character to back up that belief - but I just can't see him doing it in long enough periods to win five sets.

We can't ignore the fact that Littler has beaten him seven times in a row now, including that dramatic encounter at the World Grand Prix when the Nuke was well below his best in a much shorter format and there for the taking.

Price also lost out in a deciding leg at the World Series of Darts Finals and at the recent Players Championship Finals, he ultimately fell short 11-8 despite - in his words - throwing everything at him.

There's no guarantee Price gets that far anyway, with Chris Dobey in his section.

Hollywood loves Ally Pally having reached the semi-finals last year and the quarters in the two editions before that, and while he hasn't enjoyed the best of seasons in the majors, he did reach the last eight of the Players Championship Finals, where he averaged 104 in a 10-5 defeat to Littler.

Quarter Verdict: Littler to win quarter; only Price could feasibly stop him

QUARTER TWO

• (4) Stephen Bunting v Sebastian Bialecki
• Richard Veenstra v Nitin Kumar
• (29) Dirk van Diuijvenbode v Andy Baetens
• James Hurrell v Stowe Buntz
• (13) Martin Schindler v Stephen Burton
• Steve Lennon v Tim Pusey
• (20) Ryan Searle v Chris Landman
• Brendan Dolan v Travis Dudeney
• (5) Jonny Clayton v Adam Lipscome
• Dom Taylor v Oskar Lukasiak
• (28) Michael Smith v Lisa Ashton
• Niels Zonneveld v Haupai Puha
• (12) Ross Smith v Andreas Harrysson
• Thibault Tricole v Motomu Sakai
• (21) Dave Chisnall v Fallon Sherrock
• Ricardo Pietreczko v Jose de Sousa

Odds to win the quarter: Bunting 7/2, Clayton 11/2, Ross Smith 7/1, Schindler 10/1, van Duijvenbode 10/1, Searle 10/1, Michael Smith 12/1, Chisnall 14/1, 20/1 bar

This is the quarter of opportunity for so many players and I really wouldn't be surprised to see a first-time semi-finalist emerging from it.

One of the major reasons for this section feeling so wide open is that none of the bigger names are heading to the Ally Pally in the kind of form they displayed earlier in the campaign - particularly Stephen Bunting and Jonny Clayton.

The Bullet is the favourite having won a highly impressive six titles this year but since the last of those on the European Tour back in September he's suffered early exits in all four majors so there are some question marks over him.

However, he's reached two semi-finals at the Ally Pally - including the last edition - so knows exactly what it takes to go on lengthy runs here and will obviously have his army of supporters rallying behind him once again.

His chief rivals in the top half of this section include Dirk van Duijvenbode, Martin Schindler and Ryan Searle, who could all put him in bother especially over the best-of-seven set rounds.

When it comes to averages, van Duijvenbode has enjoyed the strongest season of the three but he's not got any titles to show for his efforts whereas Schindler and Searle have both picked up a couple each.

In the bottom half of this quarter lies another player like Bunting would have been viewed as a very serious contender a few months ago - Jonny Clayton.

The Ferret not only picked up a pair of titles in the first half of the season but he also finished runner-up in the World Masters and reached three other major semi-finals at the UK Open, World Matchplay and World Grand Prix.

However since then he suffered early exits at the European Championship, Grand Slam of Darts and the Players Championship Finals while his average in this period of 93 is outside of the world's top 30 so you just wonder if he's run out of steam at just the wrong time.

With all this in mind, I'm pitching for ROSS SMITH to come through this quarter at 7/1.

Sure, his form in the majors this year hasn't been too good although he was a tad unlucky to run into an inspired Littler early on at the Players Championship Finals and also at the quarter-finals of the World Series Finals when he averaged 106 in a 10-8 defeat.

Apart from that he's won a pair of Pro Tour titles this season including one as recently as October and reached a European Tour final while his average over the winter of 94.65 puts him second to Stephen Bunting when it comes to players in this section.

Smith's 180 hitting can always get the Ally Pally crowd on his side and if he can get a good run going then he'll be hard to stop after Christmas.

Quarter Verdict: Ross Smith to win the quarter

QUARTER THREE

• (2) Luke Humphries v Ted Evetts
• Jeffrey de Graaf v Paul Lim
• (31) Wessel Nijman v Karel Sedlacek
• Gabriel Clemens v Alex Spellman
• (15) Nathan Aspinall v Lourence Ilagan
• Mickey Mansell v Leonard Gates
• (18) Mike De Decker v David Munyua
• Kevin Doets v Matthew Dennant
• (7) James Wade v Ryusei Azemoto
• Ricky Evans v Man Lok Leung
• (26) Cameron Menzies v Charlie Manby
• Matt Campbell v Adam Sevada
• (10) Gian van Veen v Cristo Reyes
• Alan Souter v Teemu Harju
• (23) Dimitri Van den Bergh v Darren Beveridge
• Madars Razma v Jamai van den Herik

Odds to win the quarter: Humphries 5/6, Van Veen 10/3, Aspinall 15/2, Wade 11/1, Nijman 22/1, 50/1 bar

If Luke Humphries is to get his hands on the Sid Waddell Trophy for a second time, then he's going to have to do it the hard way having been joined in quarter three by a host of dangerous candidates.

While his passage to the post-Christmas schedule shouldn't be in much doubt at all, he's on course to meet rising star Wessel Nijman in the third round and then an in-form Nathan Aspinall as early as the fourth.

Should he still be standing by that point then he could cross paths in the quarter-finals with either James Wade or the player who defeated him in the final of the European Championship and also in the opening rounds of the World Matchplay and Players Championship Finals - GIAN VAN VEEN.

However, let's not forget the fact that all these players certainly won't be happy about being in Humphries' quarter either!

Cool Hand may have largely been playing second fiddle to Littler this year and was recently usurped as world number one but adding two more major titles to his CV at the World Masters and Premier League as well as finishing runner-up in three others still constitutes a highly impressive campaign.

Although he and Littler have pushed each other on to greater heights over the past couple of years, you could also argue that if it wasn't for the Nuke, Humphries could easily have at least 12 major titles by now rather than the eight he currently has.

While I'm obviously not disputing the fact he's a very fair odds-on favourite to win this quarter, I am instead favouring van Veen and believe he also represents a viable each-way shot at the title.

The young Dutchman's ever improving performances paved the way for his maiden major title back in October, while he's also deservedly earned a lot of praise over the past 12 months for his character, sportsmanship and attitude both on and off the oche.

It was particularly impressive to see how he responded to missing title darts against Humphries in the European Championship final by quickly gathering his composure and pinching the deciding leg with a superb 100 checkout.

Van Veen's stats this year are up there with the very best and since the start of October, his average of 98.66 is second only to Littler's 100.51 and he's producing superb numbers more consistently on the bigger stages.

He's yet to win a game on the Ally Pally stage in two appearances but he's a different animal this time around and his half of this quarter is slightly more comfortable than the part Humphries finds himself in.

It could also be worth having a small flutter on NIJMAN to reach the quarter-finals and display his rich potential on the big stage for the first time.

The Dutchman boasts one of the highest seasonal averages in the entire tournament and managed to pick up a pair of Players Championship titles as recently as October.

He may not have enjoyed any lengthy runs in the majors so far but he did taste a couple of wins at the Grand Slam of Darts last month before being outgunned - as almost everyone else would have - by Littler in the knockout stage.

He's obviously in a tough section but if you're going to play Humphries and Aspinall, it's better to take them on in the shorter format rather than much later in the tournament.

Quarter Verdict: Gian van Veen to win the quarter and each-way for the title, with Nijman also expected to fare well

QUARTER FOUR

• (3) Michael van Gerwen v Mitsuhiko Tatsunami
• William O'Connor v Krzysztof Kciuk
• (30) Peter Wright v Noa-Lynn van Leuven
• Kim Huybrechts v Arno Merk
• (14) Gary Anderson v Adam Hunt
• Connor Scutt v Simon Whitlock
• (19) Jermaine Wattimena v Dominik Gruellich
• Scott Williams v Paulo Nebrida
• (6) Danny Noppert v Jurjen van der Velde
• Nick Kenny v Justin Hood
• (27) Ritchie Edhouse v Jonny Tata
• Ryan Meikle v Jesus Salate
• (11) Josh Rock v Gemma Hayter
• Niko Springer v Joe Comito
• (22) Daryl Gurney v Beau Greaves
• Callan Rydz v Patrik Kovacs

Odds to win the quarter: Rock 5/2, MVG 10/3, Noppert 11/2, Anderson 15/2, Greaves 18/1, Wattimena 20/1, 28/1 bar

Michael van Gerwen not only heads to the World Championship as the biggest price he's ever been to lift the trophy (20/1) but he's also not even favourite to win his quarter of the draw.

Since finishing runner-up here to Littler back in January, the Dutch legend has endured a tough year on and off the oche but he's still managed to pick up his first major title since 2023 with an emotional victory over Littler on home soil in the World Series Finals.

It may well be the least prestigious of the PDC's premier events but it still served as a reminder of why we shouldn't completely underestimate him.

That said, he's suffered a lot of early exits on the major stages this year and is seemingly struggling to produce those formidable performances on a consistent enough basis to challenge regularly for titles.

I'd say his biggest threat of reaching the quarter-finals is Jermaine Wattimena rather than Gary Anderson, who hasn't enjoyed a good run at a major since the 2024 Grand Slam of Darts and just seems to lack the staying power in longer formats these days.

Wattimena has won a couple of titles this year and although his major form wasn't great in 2025, he did find some rhythm at the Players Championship Finals to reach the last four before bowing out to Nathan Aspinall.

In the bottom section I believe it will end up being a battle between Danny Noppert and Josh Rock, even though Beau Greaves will hopefully steal the headlines with a couple of landmark victories.

Rock's had a superb year thanks to his World Cup success with Daryl Gurney and also some show-stopping performances at the majors, particularly when he's come up against Littler.

It feels as if he's getting ever closer to challenging for an individual major but the same can be said for Noppert, who has really found new levels to his game this season - particular on the biggest stages.

Noppie has reached four semi-finals at the World Masters, World Grand Prix, European Championship and the Grand Slam of Darts, with three of those runs being ended by Humphries and the other by Littler.

His scoring power is becoming a real weapon for him, with his 180 hitting now right up there with the most prolific on the circuit and if he finds his range on the Ally Pally stage, then he's going to be a force to be reckoned with.

Noppert's confidence is soaring while his ice cool demeanour is obviously going to come in handy when we reach the pressure cooker of the latter stages.

If he does meet MVG in the quarter-finals then he'll take confidence from the fact he beat him in the last 16 of the Grand Slam back in November, and admitted afterwards that he felt he was the favourite.

Just like van Veen in quarter three, I'm going to back Noppert each-way for the title and if they meet in the semi-finals then at least we're guaranteed some representation on January 3.

Quarter Verdict: Danny Noppert to win the quarter and each-way for the title

Who wins the title?

As boring as it sounds, I really can't see past LUKE LITTLER.

There's not a big enough danger to him when the format is relatively short, and by the time he might come up against a proper title rival, I don't think any of them can live with him over best of 9, 11 and 13 sets.

That said darts is a funny unpredictable old game which is why I want to have some each-way interest in the bottom half - namely GIAN VAN VEEN and DANNY NOPPERT.

If either reach the final then realistically they'll need to be facing someone other than Littler to stand a fighting chance but at half the odds for doing so, both represent value.

How many nine-darters?

There were two nine-darters on the Ally Pally stage last year thanks to Christian Kist and Damon Heta but it could easily have been more if Luke Littler had a little more fortune at the end of his numerous attempts.

We've seen eight more perfect legs in major tournaments in 2025 and 54 overall in PDC competition so it's fair to say the top players are giving themselves more opportunities than ever to send the crowds wild.

I feel we could get three this time, especially when you consider all the seeded players have an extra match to play than in previous years, and I'd be very surprised if one of them isn't Littler.

I expect him to play all seven possible matches and with the rate at which he hits 180s, he's bound to get a handful of chances at joining the list of players to achieve perfection on the Ally Pally stage.

Backing LITTLER TO HIT A NINE-DARTER and THREE OR MORE NINE-DARTERS IN THE TOURNAMENT is going to provide interest throughout the entirety of the tournament, and both seem very realistic.

Published at 0730 GMT on 08/13/25

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