World Series of Darts Finals 2026 | Day One Preview and Order of Play
The 2026 World Series of Darts Finals commence on Thursday evening as a host of decorated stars bid to avoid an early exit in Amsterdam.
The 12th staging of the £450,000 event runs from September 17-20 at the AFAS Live and features the top eight players from the World Series Order of Merit joined by a series of Tour Card holder qualifiers, World Series Order of Merit qualifiers and PDC Order of Merit qualifiers.
Matches from the top half of the draw take centre stage on opening night, including world number two Luke Humphries up against home favourite Jermaine Wattimena.
Fourth seed Humphries clinched his third World Series title at the US Masters in June but remains in pursuit of a first major title since the 2025 Premier League.
Humphries reached the semi-finals on debut in this event in 2023 and has fallen at the quarter-final stage in each of his two subsequent appearances.
Wattimena, meanwhile, is without a win in his two previous World Series Finals appearances but has enjoyed a fine season so far, adding a further Players Championship title and finishing runner-up at the European Darts Open.
Reigning champion Michael van Gerwen begins the defence of his title with a showdown against two-time major winner Daryl Gurney.
Van Gerwen has dominated this event since its inception in 2015, racking up six titles, and has added a further two World Series titles to his name in 2026 at the Bahrain Masters and Nordic Masters.
Gurney came through the Tour Card holder qualifier last month to seal his seventh appearance in this event, having notably reached the semi-finals back in 2017.
European Champion Gian van Veen is also set for a rapturous reception on home soil when he takes on former Masters champion Chris Dobey.
Fifth seed Van Veen finished runner-up at the Bahrain Masters in January and has also reached the semi-finals of the World Masters and World Matchplay this season.
Dobey makes his third consecutive appearance via the Order of Merit, having reached the quarter-finals in each of his last two outings in Amsterdam.
A familiar fixture sees Premier League stars Stephen Bunting and Josh Rock collide for the fifth time in televised competition this year.
Rock prevailed in their encounters in the Last 16 of both the UK Open and World Matchplay, though Bunting has won six of their ten previous meetings in total.
Emerging Dutch star Kevin Doets looks to utilise home advantage when he meets European Tour man of the moment – Ross Smith.
Doets has claimed a maiden ProTour title this season, whilst also reaching the final of the Austrian Open and climbing to 28th in the Order of Merit in the process.
Smith has affirmed himself as one of the most consistent performers on the circuit this year, picking up a brace of European Tour titles since May and reaching a further two finals, as well as securing two Players Championship titles.
Former World Champion Rob Cross faces a formidable opening test against World Championship semi-finalist Ryan Searle.
Cross has enjoyed a welcome return to form in recent months, winning a Players Championship event in June and finishing runner-up at the Slovak Darts Open.
Searle has also secured a Players Championship title in 2026 and is making his debut in the World Series Finals as world number 13.
Dirk van Duijvenbode, the 2022 runner-up, faces Sweden’s Viktor Tingstrom – who pulled off a 6-5 scalp of Bunting at the Nordic Darts Masters before losing out in a deciding leg to Van Gerwen.
Czechia’s number one Karel Sedlacek, who came through the Tour Card holder qualifier to earn his debut in Amsterdam, faces New Zealand’s Ben Robb – quarter-finalist in last year’s WDF World Championship.
The action gets under way from 6pm BST, with first round ties to be contested over the best of 11 legs.
WATCH THE WORLD SERIES OF DARTS FINALS STREAMED LIVE HERE
18+ | Geo Restrictions may apply | Please Gamble Responsibly
World Series of Darts Finals 2026 Day One Schedule
All times BST (local time +1 hour)
Thursday September 17
First Round
6pm-10pm
Viktor Tingstrom v Dirk van Duijvenbode
Rob Cross v Ryan Searle
Karel Sedlacek v Ben Robb
Kevin Doets v Ross Smith
Stephen Bunting v Josh Rock
Luke Humphries v Jermaine Wattimena
Michael van Gerwen v Daryl Gurney
Gian van Veen v Chris Dobey
