Draw Confirmed for 2025 WDF World Championship at Lakeside

85 players to compete across four tournaments at the iconic Frimley Green venue from November 28 to December 7

The draw for the 2025 WDF World Championship has been confirmed, with 85 players from around the world set to battle for glory at the historic Lakeside Country Club in Frimley Green later this year.

The tournament — now in its fourth staging under the WDF banner — will run from November 28 to December 7, featuring competitions for men, women, boys, and girls, and boasting a total prize fund of £221,000.

A field of 48 men, 25 women, eight boys and four girls will compete across ten days of action as Lakeside once again plays host to the sport’s biggest names and brightest emerging stars.

McGuirk Begins Title Defence

Reigning men’s champion Shane McGuirk will begin the defence of his title against Finland’s Petri Rasmus. The Irishman will be looking to replicate his 2024 heroics, when he lifted the trophy for the first time, and a win in his opening contest would set up a second-round tie with ninth seed Stefan Schroder.

Top seed Jimmy van Schie will open his campaign against either Welshman Alex Williams or Croatia’s Romeo Grbavac, who meet in round one. Grbavac is one of 24 debutants in the men’s event, underlining the strength and international depth of this year’s field.

Another Croatian, Boris Krcmar, who has made a name for himself on both the steel-tip and soft-tip circuits, will make his Lakeside debut against American qualifier Kevin Luke.

Third seed Neil Duff — the 2022 world champion — starts out against either New Zealand’s Ben Robb or Sweden’s Johan Engstrom, while two former PDC Tour Card holders, Brian Raman and Jeffrey Sparidaans, will collide in one of the standout ties of the opening round.

Second seed Jason Brandon will await the winner of a fascinating contest between 14-year-old Scottish prospect Mitchell Lawrie and Japan’s Tomoya Maruyama. Lawrie, who made headlines with his impressive performances during the qualifying campaign, will also compete in the boys’ event, where he meets Hungary’s Adam Sepsi in the quarter-finals.

Women’s Title Guaranteed a New Champion

A new name will be etched onto the women’s trophy this year following the absence of reigning champion Beau Greaves, who will instead compete at the PDC World Championship at Alexandra Palace.

Dutch star Lerena Rietbergen enters as the top seed and will face either Aletta Wajer or Aaja Jalbert in round two.

Last year’s runner-up Sophie McKinlay is also among the favourites and will open her campaign against either 2024 Girls’ World Champion Paige Pauling or Switzerland’s Lisa Zollikofer.

Veteran Deta Hedman, making her 15th Lakeside appearance at the age of 66, will meet either former world champion Mikuru Suzuki or Finland’s Kirsi Viinikainen in a mouthwatering opening tie.

Newly crowned Women’s World Master Lorraine Hyde will also feature, starting her bid for another major title against either Paula Murphy or Turkey’s Emine Dursun.

Administrative Error Prompts Expanded Field

This year’s women’s event will include an expanded field of 25 players after an administrative error during the final qualifier in Budapest. Swiss player Lisa Zollikofer was mistakenly omitted from the official list after Maud Jansson was incorrectly invited in her place.

To resolve the issue, the WDF elected to include both players, increasing the number of participants and introducing an additional qualifier. Zollikofer now occupies the place of Qualifier 1 in the draw, while Qualifier 2 will be determined by a play-in match on the opening day between the winners of the final qualifying matches in Budapest.

What’s Next

The full schedule of play for the 2025 WDF World Championship is due to be confirmed on Wednesday, with opening matches expected to begin on November 28.

With world champions past and future among the line-up, another classic Lakeside fortnight awaits — complete with the unique atmosphere and drama that have made the Frimley Green stage synonymous with darts history.

Draw Confirmed for 2025 WDF World Championship at Lakeside

Men’s WDF Lakeside World Championship 2025 Draw

First Round

Alex Williams v Romeo Grbavac

Marko Kantele v Dalibor Smolik

Ryan Hogarth v Jonas Masalin

Shane McGuirk v Petri Rasmus

Dennis Nilsson v Shane Sakchekapo

Caleb Hope v Darren Johnson

Karl Schaefer v Daniel Bauerdick

Kevin Luke v Boris Krcmar

Mitchell Lawrie v Tomoya Maruyama

Bradley Kirk v Jeff Springer Jr

Vince Tipple v Haruki Muramatsu

Brian Raman v Jeffrey Sparidaans

Ben Robb v Johan Engstrom

Jim McEwan v Stephen Rosney

Jenson Walker v Jiri Brejcha

Cliff Prior v Clint Clarkson

Second Round

Jimmy van Schie (1) v Williams/Grbavac

Paul Krohne (16) v Kantele/Smolik

Corne Groeneveld (8) v Hogarth/Masalin

Stefan Schroder (9) v McGuirk/Rasmus

James Beeton (4) v Nilsson/Sakchekapo

Liam Maendl-Lawrance (13) v Hope/Johnson

Benjamin Pratnemer (5) v Schaefer/Bauerdick

David Pallett (12) v Luke/Krcmar

Jason Brandon (2) v Lawrie/Maruyama

Andy Davidson (15) v Kirk/Springer Jr

Matt Clark (7) v Tipple/Muramatsu

Francois Schweyen (10) v Raman/Sparidaans

Neil Duff (3) v Robb/Engström

Thomas Junghans (14) v McEwan/Rosney

David Fatum (6) v Walker/Brejcha

Raymond Smith (11) v Prior/Clarkson

WDF Women’s World Championship 2025 Draw

First Round

Aletta Wajer v Aaja Jalbert

Joanne Hadley v Eve Watson

Irina Armstrong v Maria Carli

Jitka Cisarova v Maud Jansson

Paula Murphy v Emine Dursun

Priscilla Steenbergen v Mayumi Ouchi OR Nina Lech-Musialska

Kirsi Viinikainen v Mikuru Suzuki

Paige Pauling v Lisa Zollikofer

Second Round

Lerena Rietbergen v Wajer/Jalbert

Aileen de Graaf v Hadley/Watson

Nicole Regnaud v Armstrong/Carli

Rhian O’Sullivan v Cisarova/Jansson

Lorraine Hyde v Murphy/Dursun

Tracy Feiertag v Steenbergen/Ouchi/Lech-Musialska

Deta Hedman v Viinikainen/Suzuki

Sophie McKinlay v Pauling/Zollikofer

WDF Youth World Championship 2025 Draw

Quarter-Finals

Mitchell Lawrie (SCO) v Adam Sepsi (HUN)

Kaya Baysal (ENG) v Thees Kogelnik (GER)

Florian Preis (GER) v Archie Self (ENG)

Mason Teese (ENG) v Benedek Szabo (HUN)

WDF Girls World Championship 2025 Draw

Semi-Finals

Paige Pauling (ENG) v Zehra Gemi (TUR)

Ruby Grey (ENG) v Rebecca Allen (IRE)