The qualifying structure for the expanded Paddy Power World Darts Championship has been confirmed, as the sport’s biggest names prepare to compete for an incredible £1m top prize.
The 2025/2026 World Darts Championship will see a record-breaking 128-player field vying to lift the iconic Sid Waddell Trophy, with a total prize fund of £5m on offer.
The top 40 players from the PDC Order of Merit following November’s Players Championship Finals will qualify automatically, including reigning champion Luke Littler.
World number one Luke Humphries will also headline at Alexandra Palace, alongside three-time champion Michael van Gerwen - the runner-up to Littler last January.
The top 40 non-qualified players from the ProTour Order of Merit will also feature in this year’s extravaganza, with the remaining 48 places set to be allocated to International Qualifiers.
The expansion of the tournament will provide players from the PDC’s global affiliate tours and secondary tours with further opportunities to compete on the sport’s biggest stage.
This will include a minimum of four women in the 128-player field, along with three Winmau Development Tour and Challenge Tour representatives.
There are also five places up for grabs for players competing on the Championship Darts Corporation circuit, while five players from the PDC Asian Tour Order of Merit will also earn a place in the sport’s flagship event alongside the PDC Asian Championship finalists.
Additionally, there will be a trio of representatives from the PDC Nordic & Baltic circuit, with the top two players on the PDCNB ProTour Order of Merit set to be joined by the winner of the inaugural PDC Nordic & Baltic Championship, where 24 players will compete to win the Jann Hoffmann Trophy.
The inaugural PDC ANZ Premier League champion will also be joined by the Order of Merit winners from the DartPlayers Australia ProTour, DartPlayers New Zealand ProTour and new ADA Australian Tour.
In a change from previous years, all players will enter the tournament at the first round stage, with 32 seeded players and players ranked 33-64 drawn at random into the left hand side of the draw against the remaining 64 qualifiers.
The 2025/26 World Darts Championship will begin in December before culminating in January, with further information to be confirmed in due course.
2025/26 Paddy Power World Darts Championship
Field Composition
Top 40 from PDC Order of Merit
Top 40 from ProTour Order of Merit not otherwise qualified
48x International Qualifiers
First Round
Top 32 from PDC Order of Merit seeded in standard seed pattern.
Players 33-64 from PDC Order of Merit drawn at random to left hand side of the draw.
Remaining 64 players drawn at random.
International Qualifiers
Invited in the following order
PDC World Youth Champion
PDC Development Tour Winner
PDC Development Tour Runner-Up
PDC Development Tour Third Place
PDC Challenge Tour Winner
PDC Challenge Tour Runner-Up
PDC Challenge Tour Third Place
PDC Women's World Matchplay Winner
PDC Women's Series Winner
PDC Women's Series Runner-Up
PDC Women's Series Third Place
Steel Darts Japan Tour Winner
PDC China Championship Winner
IDC Indian Qualifier
PDC Asian Championship Winner
PDC Asian Championship Runner-Up
PDC Asian Tour Winner
PDC Asian Tour Runner-Up
PDC Asian Tour Third Place
PDC Asian Tour Fourth Place
PDC Asian Tour Fifth Place
PDCE Netherlands & Belgium Qualifier
PDCE Mediterranean Qualifier
PDCE South-East Europe Qualifier
PDCE Czechia Qualifier
PDO Polish Qualifier
PDCE DACH Super League Winner
Hungarian Super League Winner
PDC UK&IRE Tour Card Holder & Associate Member Qualifier
PDC North American Championship Winner
CDC Continental Cup Winner
CDC Cross-Border Challenge Winner
CDC Top Ranked American
CDC Top Ranked Canadian
CDLC Qualifier
PDC Nordic & Baltic Championship Winner
PDCNB ProTour Winner
PDCNB ProTour Runner-Up
ANZ Premier League Winner
ADA Australian Tour Winner
DPA ProTour Winner
DPNZ ProTour Winner
African Darts Group Qualifier
PDC Tour Card Holder Qualifier 1
PDC Tour Card Holder Qualifier 2
PDC Tour Card Holder Qualifier 3
PDC Tour Card Holder Qualifier 4
One Place TBC
Please Note: PDC Rule 7.6 clarifies Nationality for events.
Mediterranean Qualifier open to players from the following countries: Andorra, France, Gibraltar, Italy, Portugal, San Marino, Spain
South-East Europe Qualifier open to players from the following countries: Albania, Belarus*, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, Russia*, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Türkiye, Ukraine
* Players from Russia and Belarus may only enter subject to certain special conditions which can be obtained from the PDC in advance of an entry being made.
UK & Ireland Tour Card Holder & Associate Member Qualifier will take place on Saturday November 1 in Wigan, and will be open to Tour Card Holders & Associate Members who played in 2025 UK Qualifying School.
Where players qualify through multiple routes, PDC Order of Merit rules will apply.