2025 PDC World Cup of Darts Set to Begin as England Eyes Sixth Title

The 2025 BetVictor World Cup of Darts kicks off this Thursday in Frankfurt, where England’s dynamic duo Luke Humphries and Luke Littler are aiming to lead their country to a record-extending sixth title.

Taking place at the Eissporthalle from June 12–15, this year’s tournament features 40 nations in a revamped format where all matches are played as doubles, from the group stages through to the final.

The top four seeds—England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland—will bypass the group phase and jump straight into Saturday’s second-round action, thanks to their collective rankings in the PDC Order of Merit.

The other 36 participating countries have been placed into 12 groups of three teams each, including 12 seeded teams. Only the top nation from each group will progress to the last 16, where they’ll meet the top four.

Team England, the defending champions, will see Humphries and Littler pair up for the first time—a combination many are calling a potential dream team. Littler will make his World Cup debut, while Humphries returns after winning last year’s title alongside Michael Smith. Fresh off his first Premier League victory (where he beat Littler), Humphries is excited about the partnership.

“There’s pressure, sure—but we’re good mates and have a strong connection. If we click, we have every chance,” Humphries said. “We believe in ourselves. Whoever wants to stop us will need to be at their absolute best.”

BetVictor has made England 2/5 favourites to win, but Wales’ Jonny Clayton remains confident that he and Gerwyn Price can secure their third title together, having already triumphed in 2020 and 2023.

“We’ve won it before, and we’re back to win it again,” said Clayton, who’s been in strong form recently. “I don’t care if they’re world number one and two—us Welsh boys are coming for them!”

Representing Scotland, veterans Gary Anderson and Peter Wright will once again join forces, while Northern Ireland features a fresh partnership between Josh Rock and Daryl Gurney.

This year also marks a shift for the Netherlands, who will compete in the group phase for the first time under the current format. Danny Noppert teams up with World Youth Champion Gian van Veen, as the four-time winners (2010, 2014, 2017, 2018) take on Italy and Hungary in Group A. Van Veen expressed his excitement ahead of his World Cup debut.

“Playing for the Netherlands in this tournament is a dream,” said the 23-year-old. “Danny and I know each other well and have great chemistry—something that really matters in doubles.”

Among other notable teams, Belgium introduces a new combination with Mike De Decker and the returning Dimitri Van den Bergh. Germany’s hopes rest with Martin Schindler and first-timer Ricardo Pietreczko. Ireland, finalists in 2019, will be represented by William O’Connor and Keane Barry.

Austria headlines Group H, joined by Spain and 2022 champions Australia (Damon Heta and Simon Whitlock). Additional seeded nations in the group stage include Poland, Canada, Sweden, the USA, Czechia, Croatia, and Finland. Argentina will make its first-ever appearance.

Other returning teams include Chinese Taipei, which reached the last 16 in its 2024 debut, and India, making just its second showing since 2015. Singapore’s 71-year-old legend Paul Lim will once again lead his nation in Group C.

The tournament opens with group matches on Thursday, followed by more fixtures on Friday, including the final round of group play. The draw for the last 16 will take place Friday evening, setting the stage for the top-seeded teams to begin their campaigns on Saturday.

A full day of knockout action will wrap up the event on Sunday, with the quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final all scheduled in a thrilling double session. The exact schedule for the weekend rounds will be announced soon.

2025 PDC World Cup of Darts Set to Begin as England Eyes Sixth Title

2025 BetVictor World Cup of Darts

June 12-15 2025, Eissporthalle, Frankfurt, Germany

Seeded through to Second Round

(1) England

(2) Wales

(3) Scotland

(4) Northern Ireland

Group Stage Draw

Group A

(5) Netherlands

Italy

Hungary

Group B

(6) Belgium

Latvia

Philippines

Group C

(7) Germany

Portugal

Singapore

Group D

(8) Republic of Ireland

Gibraltar

China

Group E

(9) Poland

South Africa

Norway

Group F

(10) Canada

Malaysia

Denmark

Group G

(11) Sweden

Lithuania

France

Group H

(12) Austria

Spain

Australia

Group I

(13) USA

Hong Kong

Bahrain

Group J

(14) Czechia

Chinese Taipei

India

Group K

(15) Croatia

Japan

Switzerland

Group L

(16) Finland

New Zealand

Argentina

Draw Bracket – Second Round onwards

(1) England v

v

(4) Northern Ireland v

v

(2) Wales v

v

(3) Scotland v

v

Session Schedule

Thursday June 12 (1900 local time, 1800 BST)

First Group Matches (Seeded Nation v Nation 2)

Sweden v Lithuania (G)

Czechia v Chinese Taipei (J)

Croatia v Japan (K)

Republic of Ireland v Gibraltar (D)

Canada v Malaysia (F)

USA v Hong Kong (I)

Poland v South Africa (E)

Belgium v Latvia (B)

Netherlands v Italy (A)

Germany v Portugal (C)

Austria v Spain (H)

Finland v New Zealand (L)

Friday June 13

Afternoon Session (1200 local time, 1100 BST)

Second Group Matches

(Thursday’s Losing Team v Nation 3)

Schedule in same group order as Thursday’s evening session

Evening Session (1900 local time, 1800 BST)

Third Group Matches

(Thursday’s Winning Team v Nation 3)

Schedule in same group order as Thursday’s evening session

Saturday June 14

Afternoon Session (1300 local time, 1200 BST)

Second Round x4

Evening Session (1900 local time, 1800 BST)

Second Round x4

Sunday June 15

Afternoon Session (1300 local time, 1200 BST)

Quarter-Finals

Evening Session (1900 local time, 1800 BST)

Semi-Finals

Final

Match Format

First Round (Group Stage) – Best of seven legs

Second Round – Best of 15 legs

Quarter-Finals – Best of 15 legs

Semi-Finals – Best of 15 legs

Final – Best of 19 legs

All games will be played in a Doubles format, 501 with straight start and double finish.

Competing Nations & Pairings

(1) England – Luke Humphries & Luke Littler

(2) Wales – Jonny Clayton & Gerwyn Price

(3) Scotland – Gary Anderson & Peter Wright

(4) Northern Ireland – Josh Rock & Daryl Gurney

Argentina – Jesus Salate & Victor Guillin

Australia – Damon Heta & Simon Whitlock

Austria – Mensur Suljovic & Rusty-Jake Rodriguez

Bahrain – Sadeq Mohamed & Hasan Bucheeri

Belgium – Mike De Decker & Dimitri Van den Bergh

Canada – Matt Campbell & Jim Long

China – Xiaochen Zong & Lihao Wen

Chinese Taipei – Pupo Teng-Lieh & An-Sheng Lu

Croatia – Pero Ljubic & Boris Krcmar

Czechia – Karel Sedlacek & Petr Krivka

Denmark – Benjamin Reus & Andreas Hyllgaardhus

Finland – Teemu Harju & Marko Kantele

France – Thibault Tricole & Jacques Labre

Germany – Martin Schindler & Ricardo Pietreczko

Gibraltar – Craig Galliano & Justin Hewitt

Hong Kong – Man Lok Leung & Lok Yin Lee

Hungary – György Jehirszki & Gergely Lakatos

India – Nitin Kumar & Mohan Goel

Italy – Michele Turetta & Massimo Dalla Rosa

Japan – Ryusei Azemoto & Tomoya Goto

Latvia – Madars Razma & Valters Melderis

Lithuania – Darius Labanauskas & Mindaugas Barauskas

Malaysia – Tengku Shah & Tan Jenn Ming

Netherlands – Danny Noppert & Gian van Veen

New Zealand – Haupai Puha & Mark Cleaver

Norway – Cor Dekker & Kent Joran Sivertsen

Philippines – Lourence Ilagan & Paolo Nebrida

Poland – Krzysztof Ratajski & Radek Szaganski

Portugal – Jose de Sousa & Bruno Nascimento

Republic of Ireland – William O’Connor & Keane Barry

Singapore – Paul Lim & Phuay Wei Tan

South Africa – Cameron Carolissen & Devon Petersen

Spain – Daniel Zapata & Ricardo Fernandez

Sweden – Jeffrey de Graaf & Oskar Lukasiak

Switzerland – Stefan Bellmont & Alex Fehlmann

USA – Danny Lauby & Jules van Dongen

Prize Fund (Per Team)

Winners – £80,000

Runners-Up – £50,000

Semi-Finalists – £30,000

Quarter-Finalists – £20,000

Last 16 Losers – £9,000

Second in Group – £5,000

Third in Group – £4,000

Total £450,000