The race to qualify for the 2025 Betfred World Matchplay continues this week, as the PDC ProTour returns with a treble-header in Leicester.
The latest instalment of ProTour action will take place at the Mattioli Arena from June 17-19, as 128 players compete for the £15,000 top prize in Players Championships 17-19.
There are just five events remaining before the Betfred World Matchplay qualification cut-off, with the 32-player field set to be confirmed following the conclusion of Players Championship 21 on July 9.
The top 16 players from the PDC Order of Merit will be seeded for July's showpiece event in Blackpool, and they will be joined by 16 qualifiers from the 12-month ProTour Order of Merit.
Reigning champion and world number one Luke Humphries will be chasing back-to-back titles at the Winter Gardens, as World Champion Luke Littler bids to add the iconic Phil Taylor Trophy to his ever-growing haul.
Three-time champion Michael van Gerwen - the runner-up to Humphries in 2024 - will also headline the £800,000 event, with former champions Rob Cross, Nathan Aspinall, James Wade, Gary Anderson and Peter Wright all currently in the seeded positions.
German number one Martin Schindler will head up the 16 qualifiers from the one-year ProTour Order of Merit alongside newly crowned World Cup of Darts champion Josh Rock, who steered Northern Ireland to a landmark triumph with Daryl Gurney in Frankfurt.
Two-time World Matchplay semi-finalist Gurney is also poised to star in this summer’s showpiece, while World Youth Champion Gian van Veen will make his Blackpool return alongside World Grand Prix champion Mike De Decker.
Cameron Menzies and Wessel Nijman are in line to make their World Matchplay debuts next month, while the final qualification place is currently occupied by five-time World Champion Raymond van Barneveld - the 2010 World Matchplay runner-up.
The Dutch icon is £5,000 above the qualification cut-off, with Poland’s number one Krzysztof Ratajski, European Champion Ritchie Edhouse and 2022/23 World Champion Michael Smith all vying to book their spots in Blackpool.
The table below displays the latest standings in the race to the Betfred World Matchplay, which will take place at Blackpool's Winter Gardens from July 19-27, televised live on Sky Sports and through the PDC's global broadcast partners.
