No fewer than eight Dutch players step up to the oche this week at the World Series of Darts Finals in Amsterdam, with Michael van Gerwen leading the home charge as defending champion and top seed. Gian van Veen, Danny Noppert, and Wessel Nijman are also among the home players who can go deep at AFAS Live, while Dirk van Duijvenbode, Jermaine Wattimena, and Maik Kuivenhoven also get the chance to perform in front of their home crowd.
Van Gerwen begins his title defence as the number one seed, a status owed to finishing first on the 2026 World Series Order of Merit. Remarkably, he needed only three of the six regular World Series events to top that list, winning both the Bahrain Darts Masters and the Nordic Darts Masters, and reaching the final of the Saudi Arabia Darts Masters in between. He also has fond memories of Amsterdam, having beaten Luke Littler in last year's final to lift the title on home soil. However, his ranking circuit form has been mixed: he won a Players Championship but went no further than two semi-finals across eleven European Tour appearances, and at the ranking majors he is still waiting for his first quarter-final of the season. Van Gerwen was initially due to face Lourence Ilagan, but the Filipino was forced to withdraw due to visa issues, with Daryl Gurney stepping in. Gurney, who lost in the final round of the Tour Card Holder Qualifier, has had a tough year himself, narrowly missing out on World Matchplay qualification and reaching just one quarter-final at the Players Championships, though he did make a semi-final at the Austrian Darts Open. The head-to-head strongly favours Van Gerwen: of their 42 previous meetings, the Dutchman has won 29, Gurney has 12, and one was drawn, with Van Gerwen also winning their most recent encounter.
Kevin Doets meets Ross Smith in a clash of two players who have made major strides in 2026. Doets finally claimed his long-awaited first PDC title this season, reached a European Tour final, and made his debut in the world's top 32, though results have dipped slightly in recent weeks and he suffered a heavy personal blow last month with the passing of his father. Smith has won his first European Tour event and collected two floor titles and two European Tour titles in 2026, and last weekend reached another European Tour final at the Flanders Darts Trophy, where he had to bow to James Wade. The head-to-head between Doets and Smith is perfectly balanced at 4–4, with their last meeting at the World Matchplay in July seeing Doets average 104 but still lose 10–6.
Jermaine Wattimena faces one of the game's biggest names straight away on home turf, taking on former world champion Luke Humphries. Wattimena is building on his strong 2025 form, adding another Players Championship this season and reaching his first European Tour final after two titles in 2025. Humphries is far from unbeatable for the Dutchman: of their 14 previous meetings, Wattimena has won five. Humphries is not playing the heaviest schedule this year, but when he does turn up, he frequently goes deep, having already won three Players Championship titles, one European Tour title, the World Cup of Darts, and the US Darts Masters. The World Series of Darts Finals is one of the few major titles still missing from his résumé.
Dirk van Duijvenbode only secured his ticket for Amsterdam late on, getting the call after Man Lok Leung withdrew. The draw does not appear unkind, as he faces Viktor Tingstrom, who, based on his results, is among the less experienced players in Amsterdam. Van Duijvenbode enjoyed an excellent World Matchplay this summer, reaching the semi-finals, and also made two quarter-finals on the European Tour, though since the summer break he has lost his opening match in his last two European Tour outings with below-par displays. Tingstrom earned his spot thanks to his performances at the Nordic Darts Masters, where he caused an upset by beating Stephen Bunting 6-5 to reach the second round. The Swede has held a Tour Card since 2025, but at the Players Championships he has never gone beyond the last 16.
Gian van Veen is gearing up for his second World Series Finals, having debuted in 2024 in Amsterdam, and looks to be hitting top form at just the right time. After a difficult spring, the European champion reached the semi-finals of the World Matchplay this summer and last weekend made the last four at the Flanders Darts Trophy, where he beat exactly the man he now faces again, Chris Dobey, 6-3. Thanks to that win, Van Veen leads the head-to-head 2-1. Dobey has won two Players Championship titles in 2026, but big results on the European Tour have eluded him, reaching the semi-finals at the Poland Darts Masters in February and going no further than two quarter-finals on that circuit afterwards.
A new milestone is within reach for Wessel Nijman in Amsterdam as he chases his first quarter-final at a major, and on paper he has a favourable draw against Simon Whitlock. Nijman is enjoying an excellent season, winning six Players Championships and two European Tour events, although his last title dates back to June. His results have lifted him to 12th on the world ranking, and with strong showings at the autumn majors, even the Premier League Darts for 2027 could come into view. Whitlock qualified via the World Series Order of Merit without winning a match, competing at the two World Series events in Oceania and receiving one point for each appearance. Those two points were enough to book his spot in Amsterdam. In New Zealand, Whitlock lost 6-4 to Josh Rock, and at the Australian Darts Masters, Gerwyn Price proved too strong at 6-2. Nijman and Whitlock have never met in an official match.
Danny Noppert may face the toughest assignment of all the Dutch players, meeting world number one Luke Littler. Noppert is certainly not without a chance, as the Joure thrower has shown before, having beaten Littler once at a European Tour event in 2025, though the other six meetings went the way of The Nuke. Noppert has been prominent on recent European Tour stops with a semi-final and two quarter-finals, and earlier this year he also reached the last eight at the World Masters and the UK Open, though at the World Matchplay he went out in the first round. He has fond memories of Amsterdam, having reached his first PDC major final at the World Series Finals in 2019. Littler arrives on a remarkable streak, having won every major so far in 2026. He also reached the final in Amsterdam last year, but Van Gerwen denied him the title, and on his debut in 2024, Littler won the tournament.
Maik Kuivenhoven also received a late invitation after a withdrawal, replacing Alexis Toylo to face former champion Jonny Clayton. Kuivenhoven is in a pivotal season, having climbed to 65th on the world ranking, sitting just outside the top 64 required to retain his Tour Card after this season. His results offer encouragement: he has played four European Tour events this year and reached both a semi-final and a final on the floor, and he has already secured spots at the Players Championship Finals and the PDC World Darts Championship. Clayton won the World Series Finals in 2021 and is playing better in 2026 than this season's honours list might suggest. His only title came at the New Zealand Darts Masters, and at the ranking majors, he followed his World Championship quarter-final with another run to the last eight at the UK Open. He also reached the Premier League semi-finals, though that event does not count towards the world ranking, and made a European Tour final and two finals at the Players Championships. Clayton is currently fifth in the world, with Wade and Van Gerwen close behind, and with a view to another Premier League invite in 2027, it could be important for the Welshman to hold his position. Kuivenhoven and Clayton meet for the sixth time, with Clayton leading 4-1, but there is a notable detail: their only encounter in 2026 was won by Kuivenhoven.
