Draft:2026 in PDC: Difference between revisions

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The year 2026 is the 35th year in the history of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), a darts promotion based in the United Kingdom.

PDC in 2026

Increases to prize money and World Championship field

On 31 March 2025, the PDC announced a mass increase in prize money for tournaments, starting from the 2026 PDC World Darts Championship, where the champion receives a doubled top prize of £1,000,000 from a total prize fund of £5,000,000. The field for the World Championship also expanded from 96 to 128 players. The total amount of prize money on offer in PDC events in 2026 went up £7,000,000 from the 2025 season, along with increases for the PDC’s secondary tours and a 50% rise in funding for PDC Global Affiliate Tours.^[1]^[2]

New event locations

The 2026 Premier League Darts schedule was announced in September 2025 and included a night in Belgium for the first time, as Antwerp replaced Exeter in the lineup.^[3] The 2026 European Tour saw the introduction of two new events: the Poland Darts Open in Kraków and the Slovak Darts Open in Bratislava.^[4]^[5] The Poland Darts Open replaced the Poland Darts Masters, a World Series event that was on the PDC calendar since 2023, while the Slovak Darts Open marks the PDC’s first visit to Slovakia.^[6]

As part of the 2026 World Series of Darts, it was announced that the PDC would hold its first event in Saudi Arabia, the Saudi Arabia Darts Masters, in January.^[7] The announcement followed interest shown by PDC president Barry Hearn and General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki Al-Sheikh to take darts to the country.^[8]^[9]

ITV extension

In October 2025, the PDC agreed to a new three-year deal with ITV Sport to broadcast events on ITV4 and ITVX until 2028; these events included the World Masters, UK Open, European Championship, Players Championship Finals, World Series of Darts Finals, and all global World Series of Darts events. The announcement also stated that the PDC would take control of its own event production, which was previously managed by ITV.^[10]^[11]

Televised events

The following televised events are scheduled to take place in 2026.^[12]

Ranked

The events listed in the table are ranked tournaments that contribute to a player’s ranking on the PDC Order of Merit.^[13]

Date	Event	Venue	Prize fund	Format
11 December 2025 – 3 January 2026	2026 World Championship	Alexandra Palace, London, England	£5,000,000	Sets
28 January – 1 February 2026	World Masters	Arena MK, Milton Keynes, England	£500,000	Sets
6–8 March 2026	UK Open	Butlin’s Resort, Minehead, England	£750,000	Legs
18–26 July 2026	World Matchplay	Winter Gardens, Blackpool, England	£1,000,000	Legs
28 September – 4 October 2026	World Grand Prix	Mattioli Arena, Leicester, England	£750,000	Sets
22–25 October 2026	European Championship	Westfalenhallen, Dortmund, Germany	£750,000	Legs
14–22 November 2026	Grand Slam	WV Active Aldersley, Wolverhampton, England	£1,000,000	Legs
27–29 November 2026	Players Championship Finals	Butlin’s Resort, Minehead, England	£750,000	Legs
	2027 World Championship	London, England	£5,000,000	Sets

Non-ranked

The events listed in these tables are non-ranked invitational tournaments.^[13]

Date	Event	Venue	Prize fund	Format
5 February – 28 May 2026	Premier League	The O2 Arena, London, England^[a]	£1,250,000	Legs
11– 14 June 2026	World Cup	Eissporthalle, Frankfurt, Germany	£500,000	Legs
17–20 September 2026	World Series Finals	AFAS Live, Amsterdam, Netherlands	£450,000	Legs

World Series of Darts

The 2026 World Series of Darts is a series of invitational darts tournaments organised by the PDC, consisting of seven events that will be held across four continents.^[7]

Pro Tour

The 2026 PDC Pro Tour is a series of darts tournaments organised by the PDC, consisting of 34 Players Championship events and 15 European Tour events.^[6]

Secondary tours

The 2026 PDC secondary tours are series of darts tournaments organised by the PDC that operate outside of the main PDC Pro Tour and predominantly feature players without a Tour Card. There are three secondary tours: the Challenge Tour (for players who unsuccessfully participated in the 2026 Q-School), Development Tour (for players aged 16 to 24) and Women’s Series (for female players).

Notes

^ The tournament is held across 17 different venues, with the finals being played in The O2 Arena.
^ Subject to agreement renewal

References

[14] The tournament is held across 17 different venues, with the finals being played in The O2 Arena.

[15] Subject to agreement renewal

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@@ Line 8: / Line 8: @@
 ===New event locations===
 The 2026 Premier League Darts schedule was announced in September 2025 and included a night in Belgium for the first time, as [[Antwerp]] replaced [[Exeter]] in the lineup.<ref>{{cite web |date=11 September 2025 |title=Premier League Darts 2026 dates and schedule confirmed: Antwerp replaces Exeter |url=https://www.skysports.com/darts/news/12288/13428630/premier-league-darts-2026-dates-and-schedule-confirmed-antwerp-replaces-exeter |website=Sky Sports |access-date=12 October 2025}}</ref> The 2026 European Tour saw the introduction of two new events: the Poland Darts Open in [[Kraków]] and the Slovak Darts Open in [[Bratislava]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Poland Darts Open 2026 |url=https://www.pdc-europe.tv/tournaments/et-2026-en/poland-darts-open-2026/ |website=PDC Europe |access-date=12 October 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Slovak Darts Open 2026 |url=https://www.pdc-europe.tv/tournaments/et-2026-en/slovak-darts-open-2026/ |website=PDC Europe |access-date=12 October 2025}}</ref> The Poland Darts Open replaced the Poland Darts Masters, a [[World Series of Darts|World Series]] event that was on the PDC calendar since 2023, while the Slovak Darts Open marks the PDC’s first visit to Slovakia.<ref>{{cite web |last=Gorton |first=Josh |date=11 September 2025 |title=European Tour set for further expansion in 2026 with PDC calendar released |url=https://www.pdc.tv/news/2025/09/11/european-tour-set-further-expansion-2026-pdc-calendar-released |website=Professional Darts Corporation |access-date=12 October 2025}}</ref>
 As part of the 2026 World Series of Darts, it was announced that the PDC would hold its first event in Saudi Arabia, the Saudi Arabia Darts Masters, in January.<ref>{{cite web |last=Phillips |first=Josh |date=5 October 2025 |title=2026 World Series of Darts schedule confirmed |url=https://www.pdc.tv/news/2025/10/05/2026-world-series-darts-schedule-confirmed |website=Professional Darts Corporation |access-date=12 October 2025}}</ref> The announcement followed interest shown by PDC president [[Barry Hearn]] and [[General Entertainment Authority]] chairman [[Turki Al-Sheikh]] to take darts to the country.<ref>{{cite web |last=Keogh |first=Frank |date=6 October 2025 |title=No alcohol allowed – darts heads to Saudi Arabia |url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/darts/articles/ckgew816k67o |website=BBC Sport |access-date=12 October 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=2 October 2025 |title=Barry Hearn teases Saudi future with a twist for darts |url=https://www.skysports.com/darts/video/30998/13442196/barry-hearn-teases-saudi-future-with-a-twist-for-darts |website=Sky Sports |access-date=12 October 2025}}</ref>
 ===ITV extension===
@@ Line 171: / Line 171: @@
 ====World Series of Darts====
+The 2026 [[World Series of Darts]] is a series of invitational darts tournaments organised by the PDC, consisting of seven events that will be held across four continents.<ref name=”WorldSeries” />
 {| class=”wikitable” style=”font-size: 95%”
 !No.
@@ Line 236: / Line 238: @@
 |-
 |}
+==Pro Tour==
+The 2026 [[PDC Pro Tour]] is a series of darts tournaments organised by the PDC, consisting of 34 [[PDC Pro Tour#Players Championships|Players Championship]] events and 15 [[PDC European Tour|European Tour]] events.<ref name=”Calendar” />
+==Secondary tours==
+The 2026 [[PDC secondary tours]] are series of darts tournaments organised by the PDC that operate outside of the main PDC Pro Tour and predominantly feature players without a Tour Card. There are three secondary tours: the [[PDC Challenge Tour|Challenge Tour]] (for players who unsuccessfully participated in the 2026 Q-School), [[PDC Development Tour|Development Tour]] (for players aged 16 to 24) and Women’s Series (for female players).
 ==Notes==