THE World Darts Championship returns TONIGHT.
Teen sensation Luke Littler is involved on Day One of the competition as the defending champion faces Darius Labanauskas.
Last year, Littler made history by beating Michael van Gerwen in the final to become the sport’s youngest ever world champ at the age of 17.
Since then, Littler has been smashing more records by becoming the youngest world No1 after snatching the mantle from rival Luke Humphries – just 22 months after he turned professional.
Plus, Littler’s recent darts TV trophy haul completion has made him a nailed-on favourite to retain the title.
However, the living legend will have to go up against an expanded 128-player field, who are all competing for a huge £5million prize fund.
Read more on Luke Littler
When is the World Darts Championship 2025/26?
- The World Darts Championship 2025/26 will get underway TODAY, Thursday, December 11.
- It will then run for three weeks, concluding on Saturday, January 3, 2026.
- This year’s opening day will start at 7pm GMT but daily afternoon sessions commence from 12:30pm GMT while the evening matches take place from 7pm GMT.
- Alexandra Palace is once again the chosen venue for this iconic competition.
What TV channel is the World Darts Championship 2025/26 on and can I live stream it?
- The World Darts Championship 2025/26 will be broadcast live on Sky Sports.
- Fans can also stream the action on NOW TV.
- Alternatively, SunSport will have coverage of the entire tournament through our thrilling live blog.
What is the World Darts Championship 2025/26 format?
History will be made as the field has expanded from 96 to an 128-player field.
Round One – Best of Five Sets
Round Two – Best of Five Sets
Round Three – Best of Seven Sets
Round Four – Best of Seven Sets
Quarter-Finals – Best of Nine Sets
Semi-Finals – Best of 11 Sets
Final – Best of 13 Sets
All sets are the best of five legs
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.
World Darts Championship 2025/26 schedule and results
Thursday December 11
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Kim Huybrechts 1-3 Arno Merk
- Michael Smith 3-0 Lisa Ashton
- Luke Littler 3-0 Darius Labanauskas
- Madars Razma 3-1 Jamai van den Herik
Friday December 12
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Niels Zonneveld 3-0 Haupai Puha
- Ian White 3-2 Mervyn King
- Ryan Searle 3-0 Chris Landman
- Rob Cross 3-0 Cor Dekker
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Ross Smith 2-3 Andreas Harrysson
- Ricky Evans 3-0 Man Lok Leung
- Gian van Veen 3-1 Cristo Reyes
- Damon Heta 3-1 Steve Lennon
Saturday December 13
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Mario Vandenbogaerde v David Davies
- Andrew Gilding v Cam Crabtree
- Luke Woodhouse v Boris Krcmar
- Gary Anderson v Adam Hunt
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Jeffrey de Graaf v Paul Lim
- Wessel Nijman v Karel Sedlacek
- Luke Humphries v Ted Evetts
- Gabriel Clemens v Alex Spellman
Sunday December 14
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Ritchie Edhouse v Jonny Tata
- Dom Taylor v Oskar Lukasiak
- Richard Veenstra v Nitin Kumar
- Joe Cullen v Bradley Brooks
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Lukas Wenig v Wesley Plaisier
- Dimitri Van den Bergh v Darren Beveridge
- Stephen Bunting v Sebastian Bialecki
- James Hurrell v Stowe Buntz
Monday December 15
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Brendan Dolan v Tavis Dudeney
- Cameron Menzies v Charlie Manby
- Mensur Suljovic v David Cameron
- Peter Wright v Noa-Lynn van Leuven
Evening Session (7:30pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Martin Lukeman v Max Hopp
- Dirk van Duijvenbode v Andy Baetens
- Jonny Clayton v Adam Lipscombe
- Connor Scutt v Simon Whitlock
Tuesday December 16
Afternoon Session (1230pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Alan Soutar v Teemu Harju
- Nick Kenny v Justin Hood
- Scott Williams v Paolo Nebrida
- Chris Dobey v Xiaochen Zong
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Ricardo Pietreczko v Jose de Sousa
- Danny Noppert v Jurjen van der Velde
- Gerwyn Price v Adam Gawlas
- Niko Springer v Joe Comito
Wednesday December 17 (7pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Matt Campbell v Adam Sevada
- Raymond van Barneveld v Stefan Bellmont
- James Wade v Ryusei Azemoto
- Martin Schindler v Stephen Burton
Thursday December 18
Afternoon Session (12:30 GMT)
Round One x4
- Callan Rydz v Patrik Kovacs
- Thibault Tricole v Motomu Sakai
- Ryan Joyce v Owen Bates
- Mike De Decker v David Munyua
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Jermaine Wattimena v Dominik Gruellich
- Dave Chisnall v Fallon Sherrock
- Michael van Gerwen v Mitsuhiko Tatsunami
- Krzysztof Ratajski v Alexis Toylo
Friday December 19
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round One x4
- Kevin Doets v Matthew Dennant
- Ryan Meikle v Jesus Salate
- Mickey Mansell v Leonard Gates
- Josh Rock v Gemma Hayter
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round One x4
- William O’Connor v Krzysztof Kciuk
- Daryl Gurney v Beau Greaves
- Nathan Aspinall v Lourence Ilagan
- Keane Barry v Tim Pusey
Saturday December 20
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round Two x4
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round Two x4
Sunday December 21
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round Two x4
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round Two x4
Monday December 22
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round Two x4
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round Two x4
Tuesday December 23
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round Two x4
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round Two x4
Saturday December 27
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round Three x3
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round Three x3
Sunday December 28
Afternoon Session (1230pm GMT)
Round Three x3
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round Three x3
Monday December 29
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round Three x3
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round Three x1, Round Four x2
Tuesday December 30
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Round Four x3
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Round Four x3
Thursday January 1
Afternoon Session (12:30pm GMT)
Quarter-Finals x2
Evening Session (7pm GMT)
Quarter-Finals x2
Friday January 2 (7:30pm GMT)
Semi-Finals
Saturday January 3 (8pm GMT)
Final
