Players Championship Finals 2025 | Day One Preview and Order of Play

The 2025 Players Championship Finals gets under way in Minehead on Friday with 32 matches taking place across two stages.

Day One of the season’s penultimate TV major sees the opening round take place at the Butlins Minehead Resort, with fixtures based on finishing positions on this year’s Players Championship Order of Merit.

The Main Stage line-up in the afternoon session includes a clash between ten-time major winner James Wade and 2024 Grand Slam semi-finalist Mickey Mansell.

Jonny Clayton, who reached his first major final at this event in 2017, starts out against James Hurrell – who reached the semi-finals of Players Championship 21.

Two in-form throwers collide as Danny Noppert takes on Ricky Evans, with both having enjoyed impressive campaigns at the recent Grand Slam.

Noppert embarked on a run to a fourth major ranking semi-final of the season, while Evans reached only a third major televised quarter-final of his career.

Former World Grand Prix champion Mike De Decker hopes to reignite his form at a crucial stage of the season when he faces Development Tour Order of Merit winner Cam Crabtree.

Rob Cross, runner-up here in 2022, starts out against Polish ace Sebastian Bialecki in the opening match of the tournament.

Cross’ failure to qualify for the Grand Slam saw him drop to 16th in the Order of Merit, while a landmark season for Bialecki has seen him pick up a first senior PDC title at Players Championship 22 in July.

Dave Chisnall, the 2016 runner-up, looks to register a rare win on a televised stage this year when he faces Ryan Joyce – who followed up his semi-final run here in 2023 with a quarter-final berth last year.

Fourth seed Ross Smith was gearing up to face Niko Springer in Round One, but the German’s withdrawal through illness means ‘Smudger’ will now face Ryan Meikle – who looks to take advantage of his late call-up.

Stage Two sees Players Championship event winner Bradley Brooks face 2024 Grand Slam finalist Martin Lukeman, before 2023 UK Open champion Andrew Gilding meets the highly-rated Dom Taylor.

Scott Williams looks to banish his recent dartitus struggles when he faces Ian White – whose only major semi-final appearance to date came at this event in 2019.

An all-Northern Ireland affair sees former World Cup team-mates Daryl Gurney and Brendan Dolan go head-to-head, while European Tour and Players Championship event finalist Luke Woodhouse faces former ProTour event winner Alan Soutar.

William O’Connor, runner-up in Players Championship 33, takes on former European Tour event winner Ricardo Pietreczko, while multiple Players Championship event winner Cameron Menzies faces Portsmouth’s Adam Lipscombe.

Dutch ace Kevin Doets faces a showdown with former World Championship quarter-finalist Callan Rydz, while Niels Zonneveld faces Welshman Nick Kenny.

The evening’s action on the Main Stage includes a stand-out tie between reigning and back-to-back champion Luke Humphries and newly-crowned European Champion Gian van Veen.

Humphries is bidding to become only the second player – alongside Michael van Gerwen – to claim a hat-trick of Players Championship Finals titles.

The defending champion saw his 23-month stint as world number one brought to an end by rival Luke Littler – who prevailed 16-11 in the final of the Grand Slam to retain the Eric Bristow Trophy.

Humphries, who has now lost in his last three major finals, is also bidding for revenge over Van Veen – who prevailed 10-8 in their first round meeting at the World Matchplay in July.

Van Veen is also gearing up for the World Youth Championship final against Beau Greaves on Sunday and will be determined to do the double over Humphries this season.

Littler, meanwhile, commences his quest for a sixth major ranking title of 2025 with a tie against Sweden’s Jeffrey De Graaf.

Only the Players Championship Finals, World Masters and European Championship titles are missing from Littler’s CV, and the 18-year-old will be determined to continue his pulsating run of form and go one better than last year’s runner-up spot.

Top seed Gerwyn Price, the 2019 runner-up and a winner of four Players Championship titles in 2025, looks to sustain the form which led him to the semi-finals of the Grand Slam when he comes up against German stalwart Max Hopp.

World number four Stephen Bunting looks to avoid a third straight opening round exit in a TV major when he faces former European Champion Ritchie Edhouse.

German number one Martin Schindler takes on a resurgent Michael Smith – who reached the quarter-finals of the recent Grand Slam, while Schindler’s compatriot Gabriel Clemens faces a showdown with World Cup of Darts winner Josh Rock.

Nathan Aspinall aims to bounce back from his group stage exit at the Grand Slam when he faces Czech number one Karel Sedlacek.

Stage Two sees 2014 champion Gary Anderson face methodical Belgian Mario Vandenbogaerde, while 2021 champion Peter Wright takes on former Masters champion Joe Cullen in another tasty tussle.

Five-time World Champion Raymond van Barneveld meets Polish number one Krzysztof Ratajski, while German Darts Championship finalist Dirk van Duijvenbode plays Latvian number one – Madars Razma.

An all-Dutch encounter sees Players Championship event winner Wessel Nijman face Richard Veenstra, while Premier League star Chris Dobey looks to atone for his agonising Grand Slam exit to Michael Smith when he meets Irish ace Keane Barry.

Ryan Searle, whose sole major final appearance to date came here in 2021, opens up against Scotland’s Darren Beveridge, while  Aussie ace Damon Heta faces local favourite Justin Hood and two-time ProTour event winner Jermaine Wattimena faces fellow Dutchman Wesley Plaisier.

The action gets under way from 12.45pm GMT, with first round matches to be contested over the best of 11 legs.

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Players Championship Finals 2025 Day One Schedule

Friday November 21

First Round

Afternoon Session (12.45pm-5pm)

Main Stage
Rob Cross v Sebastian Bialecki
Dave Chisnall v Ryan Joyce
Mike De Decker v Cam Crabtree
Danny Noppert v Ricky Evans
James Wade v Mickey Mansell
Jonny Clayton v James Hurrell
Ross Smith v Ryan Meikle

Stage Two
Bradley Brooks v Martin Lukeman
Andrew Gilding v Dom Taylor
Scott Williams v Ian White
Niels Zonneveld v Nick Kenny
Kevin Doets v Callan Rydz
Cameron Menzies v Adam Lipscombe
Brendan Dolan v Daryl Gurney
Luke Woodhouse v Alan Soutar
William O’Connor v Ricardo Pietreczko

Evening Session (7pm-11pm)

Main Stage
Martin Schindler v Michael Smith
Josh Rock v Gabriel Clemens
Gerwyn Price v Max Hopp
Stephen Bunting v Ritchie Edhouse
Jeffrey de Graaf v Luke Littler
Gian van Veen v Luke Humphries
Karel Sedlacek v Nathan Aspinall

Stage Two
Jermaine Wattimena v Wesley Plaisier
Ryan Searle v Darren Beveridge
Wessel Nijman v Richard Veenstra
Krzysztof Ratajski v Raymond van Barneveld
Dirk van Duijvenbode v Madars Razma
Gary Anderson v Mario Vandenbogaerde
Joe Cullen v Peter Wright
Damon Heta v Justin Hood
Chris Dobey v Keane Barry