PDC announce £1 million top prize for World Darts Championship winner amid record prize money increase

The World Darts Championship winner will pocket a staggering £1 million from 2026 amid a record prize money increase of £7 million across the PDC circuit.

In a landmark announcement, the PDC circuit will incorporate an annual prize fund of £25 million from next year, with significant increases at all levels of the sport.

The news comes after the PDC’s record TV deal with Sky Sports until 2030, believed to be in the region of £125 million.

The World Championship will feature a number of historic changes, with the field expanding from 96 players to 128 as they compete for a £5 million prize fund at Alexandra Palace, with the winner taking home £1 million.

The expanded field is likely to mean several more sessions are to be added to the schedule, though the dates for the 2025/26 event are still be confirmed.

Elsewhere, the Premier League Darts prize pot will increase from £1 million to £1.25 million from 2026, with £350,000 for next season’s champion, an increase of £75,000.

A £1 million prize fund will be on offer at both the World Matchplay and Grand Slam of Darts, with the latter also expanding to a 48-player field next year to mark the 20th staging of the tournament.

The World Grand Prix, Players Championship Finals, European Championship and UK Open will all increase to a £750,000 prize fund next year, with the World Cup of Darts and World Series of Darts Finals each adding a further £50,000 to their respective prize funds.

European Tour events will see an increase to £230,000 in prize money for each of the 14 tournaments, while the 34 Players Championship events will rise to £150,000 each.

The PDC’s commitment beyond the ProTour will also see a £5,000 per event increase for Challenge Tour, Development Tour and Women’s Series events, the Women’s World Matchplay being boosted to a £40,000 prize fund and a 50 per cent increase in funding for global affiliate tours and overseas development.

PDC Chief Executive Matt Porter said: “The £1 million prize for the World Champion reflects darts’ standing as one of the most exciting and in-demand sports in the world and the historic total will rightly attract headlines as the biggest prize ever paid out in the sport.

“However, the increased prize funds announced today demonstrate our commitment to growing earning potential for players at all levels within the PDC system.

“Expanding the player fields for the World Darts Championship and Grand Slam of Darts will provide more opportunities than ever before for players around the world to feature in televised PDC events.

“The incredible growth of the PDC in recent years has seen darts elevated to levels never seen before both in terms of playing opportunities and global interest and this is a huge moment for all players with the ambition to make it to the very pinnacle of the sport.”

PDC Tournament Prize Money 2026

World Darts Championship

Winner: £1,000,000
Runner-Up: £400,000
Semi-Finalists: £200,000
Quarter-Finalists: £100,000
Last 16 losers: £60,000
Last 32 losers: £35,000
Last 64 losers: £25,000
Last 128 losers: £15,000
Total: £5,000,000

Premier League Darts

Winner: £350,000
Runner-Up: £170,000
Semi-Finalists: £110,000
Fifth in Table: £95,000
Sixth in Table: £90,000
Seventh in Table: £85,000
Eighth in Table: £80,000
Nightly winner bonus: £10,000
Total: £1,250,000

World Matchplay

Winner: £225,000
Runner-Up: £125,000
Semi-Finalists: £65,000
Quarter-Finalists: £35,000
Last 16 losers: £22,500
Last 32 losers: £12,500
Total: £1,000,000

Grand Slam of Darts

Winner: £200,000
Runner-Up: £100,000
Semi-Finalists: £60,000
Quarter-Finalists: £35,000
Last 16 losers: £20,000
Second in Group: £12,500
Third in Group: £5,000
Total: £1,000,000

World Grand Prix

Winner: £150,000
Runner-Up: £80,000
Semi-Finalists: £50,000
Quarter-Finalists: £35,000
Last 16 losers: £20,000
Last 32 losers: £7,500
Total: £750,000

Players Championship Finals

Winner: £130,000
Runner-Up: £70,000
Semi-Finalists: £40,000
Quarter-Finalists: £27,500
Last 16 losers: £15,000
Last 32 losers: £7,000
Last 64 losers: £4,000
Total: £750,000

European Championship

Winner: £150,000
Runner-Up: £80,000
Semi-Finalists: £50,000
Quarter-Finalists: £35,000
Last 16 losers: £20,000
Last 32 losers: £7,500
Total: £750,000

UK Open

Winner: £120,000
Runner-Up: £60,000
Semi-Finalists: £35,000
Quarter-Finalists: £20,000
Last 16 losers: £12,500
Last 32 losers: £7,500
Last 64 losers: £3,000
Last 96 losers: £2,000
Last 128 losers: £1,250
Total: £750,000

World Masters

Winner: £100,000
Runner-Up: £50,000
Semi-Finalists: £30,000
Quarter-Finalists: £17,500
Last 16 losers: £10,000
Last 32 losers: £5,000
Preliminary Rounds Last 16 losers: £2,500
Preliminary Rounds Last 32 losers: £1,000
Preliminary Rounds Last 64 losers: £750
Total: £500,000

World Cup of Darts

Winners: £50,000 each
Runners-Up: £24,000 each
Semi-Finalists: £15,000 each
Quarter-Finalists: £10,000 each
Last 16 losers: £5,000 each
Second in Group: £3,000 each
Third in Group: £2,500 each
Total: £500,000

World Series of Darts Finals

Winner: £100,000
Runner-Up: £60,000
Semi-Finalists: £30,000
Quarter-Finalists: £17,500
Last 16 losers: £10,000
Last 32 losers: £5,000
Total: £450,000

European Tour Events

Winner: £35,000
Runner-Up: £15,000
Semi-Finalists: £10,000
Quarter-Finalists: £8,000
Last 16 losers: £5,000
Last 32 losers: £3,500
Last 48 losers: £2,000
Total: £230,000

Players Championship Events

Winner: £15,000
Runner-Up: £10,000
Semi-Finalists: £6,500
Quarter-Finalists: £4,000
Last 16 losers: £3,000
Last 32 losers: £2,000
Last 64 losers: £1,250
Total: £150,000

World Series of Darts Events

Winner: £30,000
Runner-Up: £16,000
Semi-Finalists: £10,000
Quarter-Finalists: £5,000
Last 16 losers: £1,750
Total: £100,000

Challenge & Development Tour Events

Winner: £3,000
Runner-Up: £2,000
Semi-Finalists: £1,000
Quarter-Finalists: £750
Last 16 losers: £350
Last 32 losers: £250
Last 64 losers: £100
Total: £20,000

Women’s Series Events

Winner: £2,500
Runner-Up: £1,000
Semi-Finalists: £750
Quarter-Finalists: £500
Last 16 losers: £300
Last 32 losers: £200
Last 64 losers: £75
Total: £15,000

Women’s World Matchplay

Winner: £15,000
Runner-Up: £8,000
Semi-Finalists: £4,500
Quarter-Finalists: £2,000
Total: £40,000

World Youth Championship

Winner: £15,000
Runner-Up: £7,000
Semi-Finalists: £3,400
Quarter-Finalists: £2,000
Last 16 losers: £1,500
Last 32 losers: £800
Last 64 losers: £600
Third in Group: £400
Fourth in Group: £200
Total: £100,000