The World Darts Championship begins on 11 December at Alexandra Palace, with 128 players set to compete for the Sid Waddell Trophy. Luke Littler leads the world rankings as the two-time defending champion, with Gian van Veen second seed after reaching last year's final. Gerwyn Price is fourth, Jonny Clayton fifth, and Ross Smith sixth after winning two of the last three major titles. James Wade, Nathan Aspinall, Josh Rock, and Wessel Nijman complete the top 10, with Michael van Gerwen ranked 11th.
The top 40 in the world rankings qualify automatically, along with the 40 highest-ranked players on the Pro Tour Order of Merit not already in the top 40, accounting for 80 of the 128 places. The remaining 48 spots come from qualifying events. Cristo Reyes leads the Pro Tour Order of Merit after regaining his PDC Tour Card this year. Beau Greaves, the only female player with a PDC Tour Card, is fourth after winning a Players Championship title this year. Charlie Manby and Jeffrey de Graaf are also in the top 10, while Mensur Suljovic, Max Hopp, James Hurrell, and Scott Williams are outside the top 10. Tommy Morris is 30th despite not being a Tour Card holder and has already qualified through the Challenge Tour. Raymond van Barneveld is 40th and faces an uphill battle to qualify.
England is the best-represented nation with 37 players already secured, including Cam Crabtree, Archie Self, Beau Greaves, Fallon Sherrock, Lisa Ashton, Gemma Hayter, and Carl Wilson via other routes. Germany has seven players confirmed, including Daniel Klose, who finished fourth on the Challenge Tour and will make his World Championship debut. The winner of the German Super League will also earn a place. The Netherlands has 17 players, with Jurjen van der Velde and Jamai van den Herik qualifying through the Development Tour. The Belgian and Dutch qualifier takes place on 14 November, and the Tour Card Holder Qualifier also offers a route.
Five women will compete: Beau Greaves, Lisa Ashton, Gemma Hayter, Fallon Sherrock, and Vicky Pruim. Pruim, born in Belgium and now representing Sweden, will make her Alexandra Palace stage debut. Several familiar names are currently outside the field. Ricky Evans is 48th in the world rankings and has reached the last 32 at Alexandra Palace seven times. Dimitri Van den Bergh, a two-time major winner, is at risk of losing his PDC Tour Card and faces limited chances, with the Tour Card Holder Qualifier his only remaining opportunity. Nick Kenny, Martin Lukeman, Thibault Tricole, Ryan Meikle, Jeffrey de Zwaan, and Mervyn King are also in danger of missing out. Paul Lim, the 72-year-old Singaporean nicknamed 'The Singapore Slinger', failed to qualify through the Asian Tour.
The final qualifying events could still shape the field, with the PDC World Youth Championship on 29 November, the PDCE Netherlands & Belgium Qualifier on 14 November, the PDCE Mediterranean Qualifier from 6-8 November, the PDCE South-East Europe Qualifier on 28 November, the PDCE Czechia Qualifier on 29 November, the PDO Polish Qualifier on 13 November, the PDCE DACH Super League from 10-13 November, the Hungarian Super League on 7 March – 31 October, the PDC UK&IRE TCH & AM Qualifier on 28 September, the PDC North American Championship on 26 June, the CDC Continental Cup from 6-7 November, the CDC Cross-Border Challenge from 17-18 April, the CDC Pro Tour from 8 May – 18 October, the CDLC Tour from 23 April – 26 July, the PDC Nordic & Baltic Championship from 6-8 November, the PDCNB Pro Tour from 7 February – 27 September, the ANZ Premier League from 26 September – 31 October, the ADA Tour from 20 February – 13 September, the DPNZ Pro Tour from 14 February – 6 September, the Trans-Tasman Championship on 30 August, the African Darts Group – Northern Africa Qualifier on 20 September, the African Darts Group – Southern Africa Qualifier on 1 November, and the PDC Tour Card Holder Qualifier on 30 November.
