From Monday 28 September to Sunday 4 October 2026, Leicester hosts the World Grand Prix, and the Netherlands will be well represented with no fewer than eight Dutch entrants. Michael van Gerwen, Gian van Veen, Danny Noppert, Wessel Nijman, Kevin Doets, Dirk van Duijvenbode, Jermaine Wattimena and Niels Zonneveld are all in the draw, but with the tournament's unique double-in, double-out format piling on the pressure, how realistic are their chances of going deep?
The format requires players to hit a double to start each leg as well as to finish, placing extra emphasis on the opening visits. Missed starters can leave players chasing from a long way back, and in such a stacked field, favourable first rounds are rare. Michael van Gerwen, a six-time World Grand Prix champion and one of the two most successful players in the major's history, faces Ryan Joyce, who finished ninth on the Pro Tour Order of Merit. Van Gerwen has won 10 of their 13 meetings, but the Dutchman has struggled for months, veering from high peaks to deep troughs. His recent World Series of Darts Finals exit, where he missed six match darts against Daryl Gurney, underlined the work still to be done. A seventh crown looks unlikely this year.
The only all-Dutch tie in round one sees Gian van Veen take on Dirk van Duijvenbode, a repeat of their recent World Series of Darts Finals meeting in Amsterdam. That night, Van Duijvenbode led 8-6 before Van Veen reeled off four straight legs to win 10-6. Van Duijvenbode later revealed he had played the whole tournament with a hand injury, raising questions about his form in Leicester. Despite the issue, he impressed by upsetting Luke Humphries 10-9 in a last-leg decider in round two. Van Veen reached the semi-finals in Amsterdam but averaged only 85 in a tame defeat to eventual champion Ross Smith. The head-to-head narrowly favours Van Duijvenbode, who has won four of their six meetings, but Van Veen has won the last two, including a 10-8 victory at the World Series Finals.
Wessel Nijman is targeting a first major quarter-final and faces a tough opener against Rob Cross. Cross is having an excellent year, won a floor title and finished eighth on the Pro Tour Order of Merit, though he surprisingly lost 6-2 to Ryan Searle at the World Series Finals. Nijman, meanwhile, has won two European Tour events and six floor titles in 2026, lifting him to 12th in the world. Their head-to-head is encouraging for the Dutchman: he has lost only once in five meetings, though that lone defeat came at last year's World Grand Prix. Danny Noppert, a semi-finalist in 2021 and 2025, meets Niko Springer, who qualified 13th on the Pro Tour Order of Merit. Noppert beat Jermaine Wattimena, Stephen Bunting and Gary Anderson on his run to the last four last year before losing to Luke Humphries. The format suits his double-heavy game, but Springer has won two of their three meetings.
Kevin Doets, who won his first Players Championship title this year and lost a European Tour final 8-6 to Josh Rock, faces Nathan Aspinall. Doets is ranked 27th in the world and has won seven of nine meetings with Aspinall, including at last year's World Darts Championship. Jermaine Wattimena, third on the Pro Tour Order of Merit, takes on Chris Dobey. Wattimena has won nine of their 13 meetings, and with a strong run could break into the world's top 16. Finally, Niels Zonneveld, up to 25th in the world, faces Josh Rock. Zonneveld reached two semi-finals and a quarter-final in the first four Euro Tour events and finished 11th on the Pro Tour Order of Merit. He has won three of five meetings with Rock, including the last three, and could break into the top 32 for the first time with a strong result in Leicester.
