The World Darts Championship is the biggest event in the darting calendar and the 32nd edition is upon us.
Last year’s winner Luke Humphries will look to defend his title, while rising stars such as Mike De Decker, Wessel Nijman, and Luke Littler prepare to perform on the biggest stage.
Here is everything you need to know about the 2025 World Darts Championship.
When and where is the World Darts Championship?
The 2025 World Darts Championship begins on December 15 and runs all the way through until the final on January 3, with three days off between December 24 and 26.
The event once again takes place at Alexandra Palace in London, the home of the World Darts Championship since 2008.
How to watch and livestream the World Darts Championship
Every session of the World Darts Championship is available to watch in the UK on Sky Sports via Sky Sports Darts, and available to stream on Sky Go and NOW TV.
The coverage is presented by Emma Paton and features pundits Wayne Mardle, John Part, Glen Durrant, Dan Dawson, and Mark Webster.
The World Darts Championship features both afternoon and evening sessions throughout December, with four matches played in each session in the opening rounds.
World Darts Championship format explained
Unlike the majority of majors on the PDC Tour, the World Darts Championship sees players play for sets format rather than legs.
Players need to win three legs to claim a set with the first and second rounds played as a best of five sets and the format expands deeper into the competition.
The third and fourth rounds expand into a best of seven sets and the quarterfinals are a best of nine sets affair.
The semi-finals are a best of 11 sets and the final is a whopping best of 13 sets as the format tests the mettle of the PDC elite.
The top 32 players in the PDC Order of Merit receive a bye into the second round with the next 32 playing qualifiers from the Pro and Challenger Tour.
Full list of players competing at World Darts Championship
96 players compete for the biggest trophy in the darts as household and brand-new names collide in the tournament.
Two of the biggest omissions from the 2025 World Championship are Steve Beaton and Simon Whitlock.
The draw for the event is as follows:
Quarter one
- Luke Humphries (1)
- Thibault Tricole
- Joe Comito
- Raymond van Barneveld (32)
- Nick Kenny
- Stowe Buntz
- James Wade (16)
- Jermaine Wattimena
- Stefan Bellmont
- Peter Wright (17)
- Wesley Plaisier
- Ryusei Azemoto
- Stephen Bunting (8)
- Alan Soutar
- Kai Gotthardt
- Dirk van Duijvenbode (25)
- Madars Razma
- Christian Kist
- Damon Heta (9)
- Connor Scott
- Ben Robb
- Mike de Decker (24)
- Luke Woodhouse
- Lourence Ilagan
Quarter two
- Luke Littler (4)
- Ryan Meikle
- Fallon Sherrock
- Ritchie Edhouse (29)
- Ian White
- Sandro Eric Sosing
- Danny Noppert (13)
- Ryan Joyce
- Darius Labanauskas
- Ryan Searle (20)
- Mensur Suljovic
- Matt Campbell
- Rob Cross (5)
- Scott Williams
- Niko Springer
- Gian van Veen (28)
- Ricardo Pietreczko
- Zong Xiao Chen
- Nathan Aspinall (12)
- Cameron Menzies
- Leonard Gates
- Andrew Gilding (21)
- Martin Lukeman
- Nitin Kumar
Quarter three
- Michael Smith (2)
- Kevin Doets
- Noa-Lynn van Leuven
- Krysztof Ratajski (31)
- Richard Veenstra
- Alexis Toylo
- Chris Dobey (15)
- Stephen Burton
- Alexander Merkx
- Josh Rock (18)
- Karel Sedlacek
- Rhys Griffin
- Jonny Clayton (7)
- Mickey Mansell
- Tomoya Goto
- Daryl Gurney (26)
- Florian Hempel
- Jeffrey De Zwaan
- Gerwyn Price (10)
- Kim Huybrechts
- Keane Barry
- Joe Cullen (23)
- Wessel Nijman
- Cameron Carolissen
Quarter four
- Michael van Gerwen (3)
- James Hurrell
- Jim Long
- Brendan Dolan (30)
- Chris Landman
- Lok Yin Lee
- Gary Anderson (14)
- Jeffrey de Graaf
- Rashad Sweeting
- Ross Smith (19)
- Jim Williams
- Paolo Nebrida
- Dave Chisnall (6)
- Ricky Evans
- Gordon Mathews
- Gabriel Clemens (27)
- Niels Zonneveld
- Robert Owen
- Dimitri Van den Bergh (11)
- William O’Connor
- Dylan Slevin
- Martin Schindler (22)
- Callan Rydz
- Romeo Grbavac
World Darts Championship pre-Christmas schedule
Sunday December 15 (Evening session: 7pm UK start time)
- Thibault Tricole vs Joe Comito
- Jermaine Wattimena vs Stefan Bellmont
- Kim Huybrechts vs Keane Barry
- Luke Humphries vs Tricole or Comito
Monday December 16 (Afternoon session: 12:30 UK start time)
- Wesley Plaisier vs Ryusei Azemoto
- Luke Woodhouse vs Lourence Ilagan
- Alan Soutar vs Kai Gotthardt
- James Wade vs Wattimena or Bellmont
Monday December 16 (7pm UK star time)
- Niels Zonneveld vs Robert Owen
- Connor Scutt vs Ben Robb
- Cameron Menzies vs Leonard Gates
- Gerwyn Price vs Huybrechts or Barry
Tuesday December 17 (12:30pm UK star time)
- James Hurrell vs Jim Long
- Kevin Doets vs Noa-Lynn Van Leuven
- Ryan Joyce vs Darius Labanauskas
- Mike De Decker vs Woodhouse or Ilagan
Tuesday December 17 (7pm UK start time)
- Jeffrey De Graaf vs Rashad Sweeting
- Ricardo Pietreczko vs Xiaochen Zong
- Ryan Meikle vs Fallon Sherrock
- Peter Wright vs Plaisier or Azemoto
Wednesday December 18 (7pm UK start time)
- Jim Williams vs Paolo Nebrida
- Madars Razma vs Christian Kist
- Ricky Evans vs Gordon Mathers
- Nathan Aspinall vs Menzies or Gates
Thursday December 19 (12:30pm UK start time)
- Chris Landman vs Lok Yin Lee
- Callan Rydz vs Romeo Grbavac
- Martin Lukeman vs Nitin Kumar
- Gabriel Clemens vs Zonneveld or Owen
Thursday December 19 (7pm UK start time)
- Nick Kenny vs Stowe Buntz
- Mensur Suljovic vs Matt Campbell
- Scott Williams vs Niko Springer
- Michael Smith vs Doets or Van Leuven
Friday December 20 (12:30pm UK start time)
- Stephen Burton vs Alexander Merkx
- Wessel Nijman vs Cameron Carolissen
- Ian White vs Sandro Eric Sosing
- Stephen Bunting vs Soutar or Gotthardt
Friday December 20 (7pm UK star time)
- Micket Mansell vs Tomoya Goto
- Florian Hempell vs Jeffrey De Zwaan
- William O’Connor vs Dylan Slevin
- Michael van Gerwen vs Hurrell or Long
Saturday December 21 (12:30pm UK start time)
- Karel Sedlacek vs Rhys Griffin
- Richard Veenstra vs Alexis Toylo
- Brendan Dolan vs Landman or Lee
- Chris Dobey vs Burton or Merkx
Saturday December 21 (7pm UK star time)
- Danny Noppert vs Joyce or Labanauskas
- Raymond van Barneveld vs Kenny or Buntz
- Luke Littler vs Sherrock or Meikle
- Damon Heta vs Scutt or Robb
Sunday December 22 (12:30 UK start time)
- Ryan Searle vs Suljovic or Campbell
- Dirk van Duijvenbode vs Razma or Kist
- Joe Cullen vs Nijman or Carolissen
- Ritchie Edhouse vs White or Sosing
Sunday December 22 (7pm UK start time)
- Martin Schindler vs Rydz or Grbavac
- Ross Smith vs J Williams or Nebrida
- Gary Anderson vs De Graaf or Sweeting
- Dimitri Van den Bergh vs O’Connor or Slevin
Monday December 23 (12:30 UK start time)
- Krzysztof Ratajski vs Veenstra or Toylo
- Andrew Gilding vs Lukeman or Kumar
- Josh Rock vs Sedlacek or Griffin
- Jonny Clayton vs Mansell or Goto
Monday December 23 (7pm UK start time)
- Gian Van Veen vs Pietreczko or Zong
- Daryl Gurney vs Hempel or De Zwaan
- Dave Chisnall vs Evans or Mathers
- Rob Cross vs S Williams or Springer
World Darts Championship prize money
£2.5m in prize money will be available to the 96 players competing at the Alexandra Palace event. Each round exit receives a different amount.
Luke Littler scooped the half-a-million prize in our simulation.
| Position | Prize money |
| Winner | £500,000 |
| Runner-up | £200,000 |
| Semi-finalist | £100,000 |
| Quarter-finalist | £50,000 |
| Fourth round losers | £35,000 |
| Third round losers | £25,000 |
| Second round losers | £15,000 |
| First round losers | £7,5000 |
A nine-dart finish will also bag the player £60,000 at this year’s event.