ANP/NOS/PDCThe Darts World Cup in London is starting
NOS Sport•vandaag, 07:02
The Darts World Cup will start today with a record number of Dutch people. A total of 96 darts players will compete for the world title in Alexandra Palace, where the tournament has been held since 2008, over the next sixteen days. Who should we pay attention to?
The first matches will be played tonight from 8 p.m. The first two rounds will be completed before Christmas, mixed together. The top players are free for the first round, but tonight reigning world champion Luke Humphries can already start his attempt to become the first player in nine years to extend his title.
The last person to achieve this was the Scot Gary Anderson in 2016. Humphries will play in the second round against the winner of the match between Frenchman Thibault Tricole and Joe Comito from Australia.
Sixteen days of action
The Darts World Cup lasts a total of sixteen days. The first and second rounds will be completed before Christmas. After a three-day break around Christmas, the third and fourth rounds will take place from December 27 to 30. The quarter- and semi-finals and the final battle will take place on January 1, 2 and 3.
The winner of the World Cup returns home with 500,000 British pounds, the equivalent of more than 600,000 euros.
A total of eight former PDC world champions are participating: Michael van Gerwen (2014, 2017 and 2019), Peter Wright (2020 and 2022), Gary Anderson (2015 and 2016), Raymond van Barneveld (2007), Rob Cross (2018). , Gerwyn Price (2021), Michael Smith (2023) and Luke Humphries (2024).
The other top favorite is the only 17-year-old Luke Littler. Last year, the wonderful talent surprised friend and foe by reaching the World Cup final on his debut, in which he even took a 4-2 lead against Humphries.
Last season, Littler won the prestigious Premier League and Grand Slam of Darts. His meteoric rise earned him a nomination for British Sports Personality of the Year, an election organized by the BBC and for which, for example, Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham and Olympic 800 meters champion Keely Hodgkinson have also been nominated.
PDCLuke Littler in November with the Grand Slam winning trophy
This year, a record number of Dutch people are participating in the World Cup: sixteen. Three-time world champion Michael van Gerwen will of course be there, as will Danny Noppert, Dirk van Duijvenbode, youth world champion Gian van Veen and Raymond van Barneveld, who won the tournament in 2007.
We also see the in-form Jermaine Wattimena, who will be in action tonight, Jeffrey de Zwaan returning after four years and Noa-Lynn van Leuven, who was the first Dutch woman ever and the first trans woman worldwide to qualify for the World Darts Championship.
Wessel Nijman is also someone to keep an eye on. The 24-year-old North Hollander is making a strong impression this season, achieving high averages and is even mentioned by reigning champion Humphries as a contender for the world title.
PDCWessel Nijman during last year’s World Cup
A number of countries are sending a darts player to London for the first time this year. For example, Rashad Sweeting is the first player from the Bahamas ever to play at the World Cup and through the very last qualifying tournament, Stefan Bellmont became the first Swiss ever to qualify for the tournament in ‘Ally Pally’.
Surprising stunts
This edition of the World Cup promises to be one of the most exciting in times. The level is close and in recent months a number of darts players have pulled off a stunt.
For example, Ritchie Edhouse, number 29 in the world rankings, has been the winner of a major tournament since the end of October. The 41-year-old Englishman defeated the Dutch surprise Wattimena, the global number 36, in the final of the European Championship.
PDCJermaine Wattimena (l) after his lost European Championship final against Ritchie Edhouse
For both men it was the first time that they were in the final battle of such an important tournament, after some top favorites had surprisingly escaped earlier in the tournament against (much) lesser opponents on paper.
Edhouse’s unexpected final victory came two weeks after Belgian Mike De Decker had won his first major title. The global number 24 crowned a very strong tournament by outclassing world champion Humphries in the final.
Last World Cup at ‘Ally Pally’?
Until January 3, the fight will take place in Alexandra Palace, the enormous building on top of the hill in North London. The contract between darts association PDC and ‘Ally Pally’ expires after this World Cup and it remains to be seen whether the contract will be extended.
The PDC is aiming for a larger venue, so this could well be the last World Cup in the iconic hall.
Darts players have mixed reactions to possible departure of ‘Ally Pally’: ‘Board hangs at the same height’