The Darts World Cup 2025 has opened. After the first evening session on Sunday, the first double session of the tournament continues on Monday. There are four more games on the program on Monday afternoon.
Especially from a German perspective, the afternoon session offers every reason to be excited: Kai Gotthardt, the first of six German World Cup qualifiers, will take part in the tournament.
Follow the Darts World Championship 2025 via our LIVE TICKER!!!
Wesley Plaisier vs Ryusei Azemoto (R1)
The afternoon begins with debutant Wesley Plaisier, a Dutchman who has had a stormy year. Despite not having a PDC Tour card, Plaisier managed to work his way up to being a dangerous player on the Pro Tour. He quickly played every Players Championship tournament as a substitute and reached three finals, winning one of them. This performance earned him his first PDC title and brought him into the limelight.
For Plaisier, this game is more than just a chance to shine on his World Cup debut. With a win he practically moves into the top 64 in the world rankings, which is crucial for his stay in the Order of Merit. His opponent, Ryusei Azemoto, is also making his World Championship debut. The Japanese earned his place through the Asian Tour, where he performed consistently well with four titles and one final place. The winner of this match will have a meeting with two-time world champion Peter Wright, who is considered beatable due to considerable fluctuations in form.
Luke Woodhouse vs Lourence Ilagan (R1)
In the second party of the afternoon session, Luke Woodhouse meets Lourence Ilagan. Woodhouse, an established name with six World Cup appearances under his belt, will take to the Ally Pally stage after Christmas for the first time in years. He hasn't been able to do that since his third round in 2020. This season he has played in almost every ranking tournament and achieved a semi-final place at the Players Championship Finals, showing that he is in good form.
Lourence Ilagan is a well-known figure at the World Darts Championship, in which he is taking part for the ninth time and regularly appears as the Asian representative. Despite often being eliminated in the first round, Ilagan has shown that he is a dominant player on the Asian Tour. This year he has reached seven finals and won three. The battle between the consistent Woodhouse and the flamboyant Ilagan promises to be interesting. Whoever wins will face talented Belgian Mike de Decker in the second round.
Alan Soutar vs. Kai Gotthardt (R1)
Alan Soutar is back at the World Cup after a year away. The Scot is known for his impressive performances at Alexandra Palace, where he reached the fourth round in 2022 and 2023. This season, Soutar won his first PDC title by winning a Players Championship tournament, a highlight of his career. However, he has had little success in televised tournaments, which calls into question his form on the big stage.
Kai Gotthardt has been one of the main players in German darts for many years, but this year the 29-year-old's career reached new heights. The Tunnel was the third German ever to win a Modus Super Series weekly title. Apart from that, he qualified for a European Tour event, showed strong performances on the Challenge Tour and gained his first Pro Tour experience at the Players Championship tournaments. To cap off the best year of his career so far, Gotthardt won the PDC Europe Super League and secured his Ally Pally debut.
James Wade vs Jermaine Wattimena (R2)
After Luke Humphries, the next high-profile star on the Ally Pally stage begins on Monday afternoon with James Wade. The Machine had a mixed year in 2024. While Wade was in decent shape on the floor and was ranked 24th in the Players Championship Order of Merit, the 41-year-old Englishman celebrated his season highlight at the end of July. In Blackpool's legendary Winter Gardens, he reached the World Matchplay semi-finals and initially defended his position in the top 16 of the Order of Merit.
However, Wade will have to dress warmly at the start of the 2025 Darts World Cup. The Machine vs. The Machine Gun – a highly explosive duel, and not just in terms of nicknames. After years of fluctuations in form, Jermaine Wattimena impressed with strong results, especially in the second half of the year. The Dutchman sensationally reached the final of the European Championship and marched into the quarter-finals of the Grand Slam of Darts.
Sport1 transmission times during the Darts World Championship
This year's World Darts Championship 2025 can of course be followed live on TV again. The tournament at Alexandra Palace will take place from Sunday December 15th to Friday January 3rd 2025.
The darts rights in German-speaking countries have been held by Sport1 and DAZN for several years. The latter channel will broadcast the entire Darts World Championship, while Sport1 will not show most of the matches live on Saturday, December 21st, but in an exclusive broadcast from 11:00 p.m.
Prize money
The participants of the PDC Darts World Championship 2025 can significantly improve their bills at the Darts World Championship. The 96 participants can share a whopping £2.5 million. This amount is almost 40 times higher than at the very first edition of the PDC World Championship in 1994. At that time the prize money was 64,000 pounds.
The 64 participants who start in the first round of the World Darts Championship will receive prize money of 7,500 pounds anyway. The top 32 in the rankings are guaranteed £15,000. These players will take part in the World Darts Championship from the second round. The amount then continues to increase per round. The new world champion will receive the top prize of £500,000.
format
First round: Best of 5 sets
Second round: Best of 5 sets
Third round: Best of 7 sets
Fourth round: Best of 7 sets
Quarterfinals: Best of 9 sets
Semifinals: Best of 11 sets
Final: Best of 13 sets
There is no tiebreak in the first round if the score is 2-2 after four legs in the fifth set. In this case, the fifth set will be played in sudden death. From the second round onwards, a tie-break rule is applied in all games; A deciding set must be won by two legs. If the score is 5-5 in the final set, a sudden death leg is still played.
Darts World Cup 2025 schedule
Monday, December 16th
Afternoon session (from 1:30 p.m.)
Wesley Plaisier vs Ryusei Azemoto (R1)
Luke Woodhouse vs Lourence Ilagan (R1)
Alan Soutar vs. Kai Gotthardt (R1)
James Wade vs Jermaine Wattimena (R2)
By Nic Gayer
