Players Championship Finals 2026 Draw | Confirmed First Round ties for Minehead

The draw for the 2026 Players Championship Finals has been confirmed following the completion of the ProTour campaign.

Following the 34 Players Championship events held throughout the season, the top 64 players on the Players Championship Order of Merit form the field for the Finals at Butlins Minehead from November 27-29.

With defending champion Luke Littler having failed to qualify for the event, a new name will be added to the trophy this year.

Wessel Nijman, a winner of six Players Championship titles in 2026, will kick off his campaign against 20-year-old Henry Coates – who stormed to a memorable Players Championship 25 triumph in July.

Coates faced a nervous wait to discover his fate following an opening round exit at Players Championship 34, eventually claiming the final qualification place by just £250.

Second seed Chris Dobey will face Belgian number one Mike De Decker in another intriguing clash, after former World Grand Prix winner De Decker snatched the penultimate spot in this year’s field.

Nijman, Dobey and Luke Humphries were the only players to claim three or more Players Championship titles across the season, with Humphries winning four titles despite featuring in just 11 events.

The world number two celebrated back-to-back Players Championship Finals wins in 2023 and 2024, and has been pitted against Darryl Pilgrim in Round One.

Michael van Gerwen begins his bid for a record-extending eighth title against Connor Scutt, while 2018 champion Daryl Gurney faces Maik Kuivenhoven – a two-time runner-up on the Players Championship circuit this year.

Scottish icon Gary Anderson forced his way into the qualification places during this week’s double-header, although the 2014 champion will meet Czechia’s trailblazer Karel Sedlacek in a tough opening round assignment.

One of the stand-out ties will see newly crowned European Champion Ross Smith go head-to-head with former World Champion Michael Smith in their first televised meeting since January 2023.

Swedish number one Jeffrey de Graaf finished the year in 20th spot on the Players Championship rankings, and his reward is a showdown against world number three Gian van Veen.

Poland’s number two Sebastian Bialecki will play number 52 seed Gerwyn Price in his opener, with De Graaf or Van Veen awaiting the winner in the second round.

Eighth seed Beau Greaves will make her Players Championship Finals debut against Dutchman Christian Kist, as third seed Kevin Doets goes up against 2024 European Champion Ritchie Edhouse.

The full schedule of play and stage allocation is expected to be confirmed in due course.

Players Championship Finals 2026 Draw

First Round
Wessel Nijman (1) v Henry Coates (64)
Gabriel Clemens (32) v Dave Chisnall (33)
Charlie Manby (16) v Martin Schindler (49)
Cameron Menzies (17) v Mensur Suljovic (48)
Beau Greaves (8) v Christian Kist (57)
Tom Bissell (25) v Rob Owen (40)
Ross Smith (9) v Michael Smith (56)
Niels Zonneveld (24) v Niko Springer (41)
Luke Woodhouse (4) v Alexander Merkx (61)
Stephen Bunting (29) v Max Hopp (36)
Sebastian Bialecki (13) v Gerwyn Price (52)
Jeffrey de Graaf (20) v Gian van Veen (45)
Jermaine Wattimena (5) v Keane Barry (60)
Ryan Searle (28) v Brendan Dolan (37)
William O’Connor (12) v James Hurrell (53)
Tommy Morris (21) v Callan Rydz (44)
Chris Dobey (2) v Mike De Decker (63)
Richard Veenstra (31) v Joe Cullen (34)
Cristo Reyes (15) v Darius Labanauskas (50)
Michael van Gerwen (18) v Connor Scutt (47)
Luke Humphries (7) v Darryl Pilgrim (58)
Krzysztof Ratajski (26) v Damon Heta (39)
Danny Noppert (10) v Scott Williams (55)
Jonny Clayton (23) v Tom Sykes (42)
Kevin Doets (3) v Ritchie Edhouse (62)
James Wade (30) v Justin Hood (35)
Dirk van Duijvenbode (14) v Alan Soutar (51)
Maik Kuivenhoven (19) v Daryl Gurney (46)
Andrew Gilding (6) v Bradley Brooks (59)
Kim Huybrechts (27) v Joe Hunt (38)
Karel Sedlacek (11) v Gary Anderson (54)
Rob Cross (22) v Mickey Mansell (43)