Luke Littler

PDC World Darts Championship 2026: Day one predictions, betting tips, acca, order of play and TV time for Thursday December 11

By Chris Hammer

Darts

Wed December 10, 2025 · 5h ago

The 2026 Paddy Power World Darts Championship gets under way at the Alexandra Palace on Thursday night so check out Chris Hammer's match-by-match predictions, best bets and a suggested acca.

PDC World Championship: Opening night preview

SL Acca: 1pt Smith (-2.5) to beat Ashton, Littler (-3.5) to hit more 180s than Labanauskas and Razma to win at 16/5 with Paddy Power

Scroll down for match-by-match previews, stats and scoreline predictions

Sky Bet odds | Paddy Power | Betfair Sportsbook

Evening Session (1900 GMT)

TV Coverage: Sky Sports
Format: First round, best of five sets

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

PREDICTING THE PDC WORLD DARTS CHAMPIONSHIP 2026!

Kim Huybrechts v Arno Merk

Three-dart average (2025): 91.14 - 83.30
180s per leg (2025): 0.22 - 0.12

Kim Huybrechts has the honour of opening this year's World Championship under way his wealth of experience of the Ally Pally stage should come in handy against the relatively unknown Arno Merk.

The Belgian has never been the most reliable of players to back, especially in recent times, but this is his 15th straight year here and that will count for something even though he's not had much to shout about this season.

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Merk earned his Ally Pally debut thanks to winning the European Super League and he's a steady enough player who averages in the 80s more often than 90s during his appearances on the Challenge Tour and a handful of Players Championship events.

I expect a scrappy encounter that could go all the way.

Scoreline Verdict: 3-2

ALSO WATCH: PREDICTING EVERY MATCH AT THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

Predicting EVERY game in the PDC World Darts Championship!

Michael Smith v Lisa Ashton

Three-dart average (2025): 92.64 - 78.80
180s per leg (2025): 0.22 - 0.09

It was great to see Michael Smith make his big-stage return at the Grand Slam of Darts last month and his run to the quarter-finals showed real signs of encouragement.

Bully Boy's performance levels are still well short of where he'd want them to be but at least he's moving in the right direction and will be confident he can pick up a couple of wins to reach the post-Christmas schedule at the Ally Pally.

Lisa Ashton is aiming for her first victory on this stage at the fifth attempt but she will need to play well above her usual levels and hope Smith has an off day. She came close to stunning Gian van Veen in a best-of-nine leg format at the Grand Slam but was soundly beaten 5-0 in her two other games.

Scoreline Verdict: 3-0

Luke Littler v Darius Labanauskas

Three-dart average (2025): 100.96 - 88.65
180s per leg (2025): 0.44 - 0.10

1pt Luke Littler to win and hit six or more 180s at 7/4 (Sky Bet)

Luke Littler begins the defence of his crown against a player who has actually managed to achieve something that's still on the world number one's bucket list - an Ally Pally nine-darter.

Back in 2021, Darius Labanauskas once raised the Ally Pally roof with one of the most ice cool nine-darters you'll ever see but will probably need to conjure up some magic moments just to win a leg or two on opening night.

That's no disrespect to the experienced Lithuanian but he's obviously not in the same league as Littler, who is short as 1/12 to complete the match treble.

You can get 7/4 on Littler to win and hit six or more 180s although we'll need him to be firing on all cylinders considering this match might only last between nine and 12 legs.

Scoreline Verdict: 3-0

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Madars Razma v Jamai van den Herik

Three-dart average (2025): 91.73 - 88.11
180s per leg (2025): 0.14 - 0.21

Madars Razma will need his experience to count for a lot when he takes on Dutch debutant Jamai van den Herik in the final match of opening night.

Razma is making his seventh appearance on this stage and obviously knows what it's all about whereas van den Herik booked his Ally Pally debut via his efforts on the Development Tour, where he finished fifth on the Order of Merit and picked up a couple of titles along the way.

The 22-year-old, who also achieved some success on the Challenge Tour, certainly has the game to test Razma based on their seasonal stats but it's a bit of guesswork to predict how his nerves will hold up.

Scoreline Verdict: 3-1