Defending champion Luke Humphries suffered a surprise first-round defeat at the Players Championship Finals on Friday night at Butlin’s Minehead, losing 6-5 to Gian van Veen. Humphries stormed into a 3-0 lead and looked in control until Van Veen produced a spectacular 161 checkout to get on the board. The Dutchman, who had also beaten Humphries in October’s European Championship final in Dortmund, then reeled off three legs to lead 5-4. Humphries forced a deciding leg, but Van Veen — despite missing two match darts and another three in the decider — held his nerve to progress. It was Van Veen’s fourth straight win over Humphries in 2025.
New world number one Luke Littler, fresh from claiming the top spot after his Grand Slam of Darts triumph, produced a commanding 6-1 win over Jeffrey de Graaf, rattling off six consecutive legs and averaging 104.
Other evening-session results saw top seed Gerwyn Price beat Max Hopp 6-2, Josh Rock overcome Gabriel Clemens 6-3, and Martin Schindler edge Michael Smith 6-4. Stephen Bunting, Nathan Aspinall, Gary Anderson and Peter Wright also recorded wins in the evening session.
Evening session results
Main Stage
– Martin Schindler 6-4 Michael Smith
– Josh Rock 6-3 Gabriel Clemens
– Gerwyn Price 6-2 Max Hopp
– Stephen Bunting 6-2 Ritchie Edhouse
– Luke Littler 6-1 Jeffrey de Graaf
– Gian van Veen 6-5 Luke Humphries
– Nathan Aspinall 6-3 Karel Sedlacek
– Chris Dobey 6-1 Keane Barry
Stage Two
– Jermaine Wattimena 6-3 Wesley Plaisier
– Ryan Searle 6-1 Darren Beveridge
– Richard Veenstra 6-5 Wessel Nijman
– Krzysztof Ratajski 6-3 Raymond van Barneveld
– Madars Razma 6-3 Dirk van Duijvenbode
– Gary Anderson 6-2 Mario Vandenbogaerde
– Peter Wright 6-3 Joe Cullen
– Justin Hood 6-4 Damon Heta
The afternoon session produced a number of shocks and notable performances. Rob Cross, Dave Chisnall and former finalist Jonny Clayton all exited, while James Wade progressed. James Hurrell delivered a standout upset, defeating Clayton with a 99.2 average. Wade beat Mickey Mansell 6-3, averaging 94.7 and hitting 50% on his doubles; afterwards he said he was “a little bit disheartened” following a frosty handshake.
Cam Crabtree capitalised on 17 missed darts at doubles from Mike De Decker, including six match darts, to steal a 6-5 victory. Ryan Joyce punished a lacklustre Dave Chisnall to win 6-4. Sebastian Bialecki defeated Rob Cross 6-2 and produced a 154 high checkout. Grand Slam semi-finalist Danny Noppert claimed a 6-2 win over Ricky Evans, averaging 103.8 and finishing with a 164 checkout. Debutant Adam Lipscombe impressed with a 6-1 victory over Cameron Menzies. There were also wins for Ross Smith, Andrew Gilding, Scott Williams and Bradley Brooks.
Afternoon session results
Main Stage
– Sebastian Bialecki 6-2 Rob Cross
– Ryan Joyce 6-4 Dave Chisnall
– Cam Crabtree 6-5 Mike De Decker
– Danny Noppert 6-2 Ricky Evans
– James Wade 6-3 Mickey Mansell
– James Hurrell 6-3 Jonny Clayton
– Ross Smith 6-1 Ryan Meikle
Stage Two
– Bradley Brooks 6-1 Martin Lukeman
– Andrew Gilding 6-5 Dom Taylor
– Scott Williams 6-2 Ian White
– Nick Kenny 6-4 Niels Zonneveld
– Callan Rydz 6-4 Kevin Doets
– Adam Lipscombe 6-1 Cameron Menzies
– Daryl Gurney 6-3 Brendan Dolan
– Luke Woodhouse 6-2 Alan Soutar
– Ricardo Pietreczko 6-3 William O’Connor
The tournament continues as the field narrows, with plenty of momentum swings and big checkouts keeping the drama high. Who will win the 2026 World Darts Championship? Watch every match live from December 11–January 3 on Sky Sports’ dedicated darts channel.