Michael van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld will face each other once again in round one of the Betfred World Matchplay.

The draw for the event at the Winter Gardens sees the two greatest Dutchmen in the sport renew their iconic rivalry.

It is the second time MvG and Barney will meet in Blackpool, and will come 14 years after their first. Van Barneveld won that round one game in 2009, beating the three time World Champion 10-3.

The last time though that RvB defeated The Green Machine in a ranked TV major was at the 2016 World Darts Championship, coming through 4-3 in an absolute classic.

Humphries plays Van Veen, Littler takes on Searle

2024 winner Luke Humphries has been handed a tough opener, as he takes on World Youth Champion Gian van Veen in what could be a blockbuster tie. Cool Hand, the world number one, is expected to play on the opening night, as is the tradition for defending champions.

Number two seed Luke Littler will start his campaign against Ryan Searle. The World Champion will be looking for his first win of his career at the Winter Gardens, having lost to van Gerwen 12 months ago in round one. He is also looking to follow Humphries and complete the Triple Crown, having already won the Worlds and Premier League.

Five more former champions in the Betfred World Matchplay field

There are another five former winners of the Betfred World Matchplay in the field this year, and they also learnt their round one opponents in today’s draw.

2023 winner Nathan Aspinall is handed a tough assignment, as he takes on Wessel Nijman, while 2018 champion Gary Anderson will face Luke Woodhouse.

2019 victor Rob Cross will play Dirk van Duijvenbode in what could be an excellent matchup, while 2021 champion Peter Wright plays in form Jermaine Wattimena. Wattimena has not played in this tournament for three years, and has failed to win on his previous four visits to the Winter Gardens.

The other remaining champion in the field is James Wade, who won the event in 2007, becoming the youngest player to win a PDC TV event at the time. He faces off against 2021 Masters winner Joe Cullen, who made the semi finals here two years ago.

2025 Betfred World Matchplay Draw

Section One

(1) Luke Humphries v Gian van Veen

(16) Danny Noppert v Cameron Menzies

(8) Nathan Aspinall v Wessel Nijman

(9) James Wade v Joe Cullen

Section Two

(4) Stephen Bunting v Ryan Joyce

(13) Gary Anderson v Luke Woodhouse

(5) Jonny Clayton v Martin Schindler

(12) Dave Chisnall v Mike De Decker

Section Three

(2) Luke Littler v Ryan Searle

(15) Peter Wright v Jermaine Wattimena

(7) Damon Heta v Andrew Gilding

(10) Rob Cross v Dirk van Duijvenbode

Section Four

(3) Michael van Gerwen v Raymond van Barneveld

(14) Ross Smith v Josh Rock

(6) Chris Dobey v Ricardo Pietreczko

(11) Gerwyn Price v Daryl Gurney

How does the draw work?

The draw for the 2025 Betfred World Matchplay sees the top 16 players on the PDC Order of Merit qualify automatically. They make up the 16 seeds for the event.

The top 16 players on the Pro Tour Order of Merit, who are not already on the main Order of Merit, also qualify for round one. They are unseeded, meaning they can play any seed in the first round.

Whoever wins their round one game moves onto round two, where 16 players remain. If all the seeds qualify, then it would be 1 v 16, 2 v 15, and so on. If a non-seeded player beats a seeded player in round one, they effectively take their seed for the remainder of the draw.

After this, two players will remain in each section of the draw. They will play each other in the quarter finals.

The semi finals will be the winner of section one v winner of section two. The winners of sections three and four will play in the other semi final.

The two semi final winners will play in the final, with the victor being crowned the 2025 Betfred World Matchplay Champion.

2025 Betfred World Matchplay Schedule

Saturday 19 July (19.00 BST)

First round x4

Sunday 20 July (13.00 BST)

First round x4

Sunday 20 July (19.30 BST)

First round x4

Monday 21 July (19.00 BST)

First round x4

Tuesday 22 July (19.00 BST)

Second round x4

Wednesday 23 July (19.00 BST)

Second round x4

Thursday 24 July (20.00 BST)

Quarter finals x2

Friday 25 July (20.00 BST)

Quarter finals x2

Saturday 26 July (20.00 BST)

Semi finals x2

Sunday 27 July (13.00 BST)

Women’s World Matchplay – Quarter finals, Semi finals and Final

Sunday 28 July (20.00 BST)

Final

Format

Round One – First to 10 legs

Round Two – First to 11 legs

Quarter Finals – First to 16 legs

Semi Finals – First to 17 legs

Final – First to 18 legs

All games must be won by two clear legs. A game can be extended if necessary for a maximum of six extra legs before a tie break leg is needed.

For example, in a first to 10 legs first round match, if the score reaches 12–12 then the 25th leg will be the deciding one.

Prize Money

There is £800,000 in prize money for the 2025 Betfred World Matchplay. It’s broken down like this:

Winner – £200,000

Runner Up – £100,000

Semi Finals – £50,000

Quarter Finals – £30,000

Second Round – £15,000

First Round – £10,000