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2026 World Matchplay of Darts: Draw, schedule, prize money and format explained originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Outside of the World Championship, the World Matchplay is one of the most entertaining majors on the darts calendar each year.
It never fails to entertain, and we often see the best players in the world clash in intense, long-format matches.
32 players will head to Blackpool looking to make it all the way to Sunday evening, but only one will come away from that night with a trophy and £225,000 to their name.
What to know about the 2026 World Matchplay of Darts
Let's take a look at some of the specifics of the tournament.
MORE: 2026 World Matchplay Darts qualifiers
2026 World Matchplay draw/bracket
*This section will be updated once the draw and schedule are released on Thursday
Here is the bracket for the tournament.
First round
| (1) Luke Littler vs. TBD |
| (16) Nathan Aspinall vs. TBD |
| (8) Josh Rock vs. TBD |
| (9) Stephen Bunting vs. TBD |
| (4) Michael van Gerwen vs. TBD |
| (13) Chris Dobey vs. TBD |
| (5) Jonny Clayton vs. TBD |
| (12) Gary Anderson vs. TBD |
| (2) Luke Humphries vs. TBD |
| (15) Ross Smith vs. TBD |
| (7) Gerwyn Price vs. TBD |
| (10) Danny Noppert vs. TBD |
| (3) Gian van Veen vs. TBD |
| (14) Wessel Nijman vs. TBD |
| (6) James Wade vs. TBD |
| (11) Ryan Searle vs. TBD |
Second round
| Luke Littler/TBD vs. Nathan Aspinall/TBD |
| Josh Rock/TBD vs. Stephen Bunting/TBD |
| Michael van Gerwen/TBD vs. Chris Dobey/TBD |
| Jonny Clayton/TBD vs. Gary Anderson/TBD |
| Luke Humphries/TBD vs. Ross Smith/TBD |
| Gerwyn Price/TBD vs. Danny Noppert/TBD |
| Gian van Veen/TBD vs. Wessel Nijman/TBD |
| James Wade/TBD vs. Ryan Searle/TBD |
MORE: Big names set to miss the 2026 World Matchplay of Darts
2026 World Matchplay schedule
*This section will be updated once the draw and schedule are released on Thursday
First round (Day 1 evening session)
| Match | Date | Time (local) |
| TBD | Sat., Jul. 18 | 7:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Sat., Jul. 18 | 8:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Sat., Jul. 18 | 9:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Sat., Jul. 18 | 10:15 p.m. |
First round (Day 2 afternoon session)
| Match | Date | Time (local) |
| TBD | Sun., Jul. 19 | 1:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Sun., Jul. 19 | 2:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Sun., Jul. 19 | 3:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Sun., Jul. 19 | 4:15 p.m. |
First round (Day 2 evening session)
| Match | Date | Time (local) |
| TBD | Sun., Jul. 19 | 7:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Sun., Jul. 19 | 8:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Sun., Jul. 19 | 9:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Sun., Jul. 19 | 10:15 p.m. |
First round (Day 3 evening session)
| Match | Date | Time (local) |
| TBD | Mon., Jul. 20 | 7:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Mon., Jul. 20 | 8:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Mon., Jul. 20 | 9:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Mon., Jul. 20 | 10:15 p.m. |
Second round (Day 4 evening session)
| Match | Date | Time (local) |
| TBD | Tue., Jul. 21 | 7:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Tue., Jul. 21 | 8:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Tue., Jul. 21 | 9:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Tue., Jul. 21 | 10:15 p.m. |
Second round (Day 5 evening session)
| Match | Date | Time (local) |
| TBD | Wed., Jul. 22 | 7:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Wed., Jul. 22 | 8:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Wed., Jul. 22 | 9:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Wed., Jul. 22 | 10:15 p.m. |
Quarterfinals (Day 6 evening session)
| Match | Date | Time (local) |
| TBD | Thurs., Jul. 23 | 8:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Thurs., Jul. 23 | 9:30 p.m. |
Quarterfinals (Day 7 evening session)
| Match | Date | Time (local) |
| TBD | Fri., Jul. 24 | 8:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Fri., Jul. 24 | 9:30 p.m. |
Semifinals (Day 8 evening session)
| Match | Date | Time (local) |
| TBD | Sat., Jul. 25 | 8:15 p.m. |
| TBD | Sat., Jul. 25 | 9:40 p.m. |
Semifinals (Day 9 evening session)
| Match | Date | Time (local) |
| TBD | Sun., Jul. 26 | 8:15 p.m. |
Prize Money
*Data via Wikipedia
| Position (no. of players) | Prize money (Total: £1,000,000) | |
|---|---|---|
| Winner | (1) | £225,000 |
| Runner-up | (1) | £125,000 |
| Semi-finalists | (2) | £65,000 |
| Quarter-finalists | (4) | £35,000 |
| Second round | (8) | £22,500 |
| First round | (16) | £12,500 |
MORE: Watch: Luke Littler hits nine-darter in one of the greatest legs of all time against Josh Rock
Format
16 players qualified for the tournament through the Main OoM and 16 qualified through the ProTour OoM.
The Main OoM players were all seeded and matched up with a ProTour qualifier for the round of 32 (first round).
First-round games are played best-of-19 legs, with the games getting longer as the tournament progresses.
In the round of 16 (second round), games are played best-of-21 legs.
It jumps up quite a bit once the quarterfinals arrive, as the format increases to best-of-31 legs.
Lastly, the semifinal round is best-of-33 legs and the final is best-of-35 legs.
It's important to note that "All matches have to be won by two clear legs; if the scores are tied after the full distance and six extra legs, the match will be decided by a sudden death leg"(Wikipedia).
This has gone into effect before, including in the 2018 final when Gary Anderson defeated Mensur Suljovic 21-19.
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