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The 2026 Grand Slam of Darts is due to take place between 14 and 22 November, 2026, at the WV Active in Aldersley (Wolverhampton), with Luke Littler being the defending champion in the event, which started life as a cross-code tournament with players from the BDO.
Since then it has become a ranking event and a cornerstone of the end of the PDC season before the World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace.
Finalists from televised tournaments, PDC Pro Tour title winners, and additional qualifiers seal 40 spots in an expanded 48-player field, being joined by eight Tour Card holder qualifiers confirmed on Friday, 6 November.
8x Group Matches (Seeded Player v Player C)
| Player 1 | v | Player 2 | Group |
| Luke Woodhouse | v | Tom Sykes | J |
| Jermaine Wattimena | v | Lisa Ashton | B |
| Stephen Bunting | v | Raymond Smith | D |
| Ryan Searle | v | Charlie Manby | F |
| Josh Rock | v | Tommy Morris | C |
| Wessel Nijman | v | Adam Sevada | H |
| Nathan Aspinall | v | Maik Kuivenhoven | P |
| Jonny Clayton | v | Anton Ostlund | G |
8x Group Matches (Seeded Player v Player C)
| Player 1 | v | Player 2 | Group |
| Gerwyn Price | v | Joe Hunt | E |
| James Wade | v | Cam Crabtree | K |
| Ross Smith | v | Rusty-Jake Rodriguez | O |
| Michael van Gerwen | v | Henry Coates | L |
| Luke Humphries | v | Paolo Nebrida | I |
| Luke Littler | v | Beau Greaves | A |
| Gian van Veen | v | Carl Sneyd | M |
| Chris Dobey | v | Jan Schmidt | N |
8x Group Matches (Player B v Saturday Afternoon's Losing Player)
| Player 1 | v | Player 2 |
| Player B | v | Saturday Afternoon's Losing Player |
8x Group Matches (Player B vs. Saturday Evening's Losing Player)
| Player 1 | v | Player 2 |
| Player B | v | Saturday Evening's Losing Player |
8x Group Matches (Groups A-H, Player B vs. Saturday's Winning Player)
| Player 1 | v | Player 2 |
| Player B | v | Saturday's Winning Player |
8x Group Matches (Groups I-P, Player B vs. Saturday's Winning Player)
| Player 1 | v | Player 2 |
| Player B | v | Saturday's Winning Player |
4x Round Two Matches
| Player 1 | v | Player 2 |
| Winner Group A | v | Winner Group B |
| Winner Group C | v | Winner Group D |
| Winner Group E | v | Winner Group F |
| Winner Group G | v | Winner Group H |
4x Round Two Matches
| Player 1 | v | Player 2 |
| Winner Group I | v | Winner Group J |
| Winner Group K | v | Winner Group L |
| Winner Group M | v | Winner Group N |
| Winner Group O | v | Winner Group P |
2x Quarter-Finals
| Player 1 | v | Player 2 |
| Winner A/B | v | Winner C/D |
| Winner E/F | v | Winner G/H |
2x Quarter-Finals
| Player 1 | v | Player 2 |
| Winner I/J | v | Winner K/L |
| Winner M/N | v | Winner O/P |
Semi-Finals
Final
| Group | Seed | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 |
| A | 1 | Luke Littler | Niels Zonneveld | Beau Greaves |
| B | 16 | Jermaine Wattimena | Alan Soutar | Lisa Ashton |
| C | 8 | Josh Rock | Kevin Doets | Tommy Morris |
| D | 9 | Stephen Bunting | Cameron Menzies | Raymond Smith |
| E | 4 | Gerwyn Price | Sebastian Bialecki | Joe Hunt |
| F | 13 | Ryan Searle | Andrew Gilding | Charlie Manby |
| G | 5 | Jonny Clayton | Rob Cross | Anton Ostlund |
| H | 12 | Wessel Nijman | Niko Springer | Adam Sevada |
| I | 2 | Luke Humphries | Joe Cullen | Paolo Nebrida |
| J | 15 | Luke Woodhouse | Krzysztof Ratajski | Tom Sykes |
| K | 7 | James Wade | Ricky Evans | Cam Crabtree |
| L | 10 | Michael van Gerwen | Jeffrey de Graaf | Henry Coates |
| M | 3 | Gian van Veen | Bradley Brooks | Carl Sneyd |
| N | 14 | Chris Dobey | Martin Schindler | Jan Schmidt |
| O | 6 | Ross Smith | Gabriel Clemens | Rusty-Jake Rodriguez |
| P | 11 | Nathan Aspinall | Karel Sedlacek | Maik Kuivenhoven |
| # | Player | Qualification |
| 1 | Luke Littler | Winner of 2026 World Darts Championship |
| 2 | Luke Humphries | Winner of 2026 World Grand Prix |
| 3 | Ross Smith | Winner of 2026 World Series of Darts Finals |
| 4 | Gian van Veen | Runner-up at 2026 World Darts Championship |
| 5 | Gerwyn Price | Runner-up at 2026 World Matchplay |
| 6 | James Wade | Runner-up at 2026 UK Open |
| 7 | Nathan Aspinall | Runner-up at 2025 Players Championship Finals |
| 8 | Michael van Gerwen | Runner-up at 2026 World Cup of Darts |
| 9 | Beau Greaves | Runner-up at 2025 World Youth Championship |
| 10 | Cam Crabtree | Finalist at 2026 World Youth Championship |
| 11 | Jan Schmidt | Finalist at 2026 World Youth Championship |
| 12 | Sebastian Bialecki | Winner of 2026 Development Tour Order of Merit |
| 13 | Joe Hunt | Winner of 2026 Challenge Tour Order of Merit |
| 14 | Lisa Ashton | Runner-up of 2026 Women's Series Order of Merit |
| 15 | Paolo Nebrida | Winner of 2026 PDC Asian Championship |
| 16 | Adam Sevada | Winner of 2026 North American Championship |
| 17 | Raymond Smith | Winner of 2026 ANZ Premier League |
| 18 | Martin Schindler | Runner-up at 2026 European Championship |
| 19 | Wessel Nijman | Two-time winner on the 2026 European Tour |
| 20 | Josh Rock | Winner on the 2026 European Tour |
| 21 | Luke Woodhouse | Winner on the 2026 European Tour |
| 22 | Krzysztof Ratajski | Winner on the 2026 European Tour |
| 23 | Jonny Clayton | Winner on the 2026 European Tour |
| 24 | Niels Zonneveld | Winner on the 2026 European Tour |
| 25 | Chris Dobey | Three-time winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 26 | Cameron Menzies | Two-time winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 27 | Ryan Searle | Winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 28 | Jermaine Wattimena | Winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 29 | Rob Cross | Winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 30 | Kevin Doets | Winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 31 | Andrew Gilding | Winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 32 | Jeffrey de Graaf | Winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 33 | Gabriel Clemens | Winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 34 | Karel Sedlacek | Winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 35 | Charlie Manby | Winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 36 | Henry Coates | Winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 37 | Tommy Morris | Winner of a 2026 Players Championship event |
| 38 | Stephen Bunting | Tour Card Holder Qualifier |
| 39 | Maik Kuivenhoven | Tour Card Holder Qualifier |
| 40 | Tom Sykes | Tour Card Holder Qualifier |
| 41 | Rusty-Jake Rodriguez | Tour Card Holder Qualifier |
| 42 | Niko Springer | Tour Card Holder Qualifier |
| 43 | Ricky Evans | Tour Card Holder Qualifier |
| 44 | Carl Sneyd | Tour Card Holder Qualifier |
| 45 | Bradley Brooks | Tour Card Holder Qualifier |
| 46 | Joe Cullen | Tour Card Holder Qualifier |
| 47 | Alan Soutar | Tour Card Holder Qualifier |
| 48 | Anton Ostlund | Nordic & Baltic Championship Qualifier |
| Year | Champion (average) | Org | Score | Runner-up (average) | Total prize money | Champion | Runner-up |
| 2007 | Phil Taylor (101.75) | PDC | 18–11 | Andy Hamilton (100.97) | £300,000 | £80,000 | £35,000 |
| 2008 | Phil Taylor (106.25) | PDC | 18–9 | Terry Jenkins (100.92) | £356,000 | £100,000 | £40,000 |
| 2009 | Phil Taylor (103.94) | PDC | 16–2 | Scott Waites (94.16) | £400,000 | £50,000 | £50,000 |
| 2010 | Scott Waites (99.86) | BDO | 16–12 | James Wade (92.79) | £400,000 | £50,000 | £50,000 |
| 2011 | Phil Taylor (109.04) | PDC | 16–4 | Gary Anderson (98.92) | £400,000 | £50,000 | £50,000 |
| 2012 | Raymond van Barneveld (95.79) | PDC | 16–14 | Michael van Gerwen (98.55) | £400,000 | £50,000 | £50,000 |
| 2013 | Phil Taylor (98.14) | PDC | 16–6 | Robert Thornton (97.02) | £400,000 | £50,000 | £50,000 |
| 2014 | Phil Taylor (102.45) | PDC | 16–13 | Dave Chisnall (98.02) | £400,000 | £50,000 | £50,000 |
| 2015 | Michael van Gerwen (100.94) | PDC | 16–13 | Phil Taylor (102.53) | £400,000 | £50,000 | £50,000 |
| 2016 | Michael van Gerwen (98.74) | PDC | 16–8 | James Wade (90.73) | £400,000 | £50,000 | £50,000 |
| 2017 | Michael van Gerwen (102.18) | PDC | 16–12 | Peter Wright (97.71) | £450,000 | £110,000 | £55,000 |
| 2018 | Gerwyn Price (96.70) | PDC | 16–13 | Gary Anderson (97.25) | £450,000 | £110,000 | £55,000 |
| 2019 | Gerwyn Price (107.86) | PDC | 16–6 | Peter Wright (96.28) | £550,000 | £125,000 | £65,000 |
| 2020 | José de Sousa (99.95) | PDC | 16–12 | James Wade (94.26) | £550,000 | £125,000 | £65,000 |
| 2021 | Gerwyn Price (103.90) | PDC | 16–8 | Peter Wright (91.51) | £550,000 | £125,000 | £65,000 |
| 2022 | Michael Smith (96.84) | PDC | 16–5 | Nathan Aspinall (90.94) | £650,000 | £150,000 | £70,000 |
| 2023 | Luke Humphries (104.69) | PDC | 16–8 | Rob Cross (103.61) | £650,000 | £150,000 | £70,000 |
| 2024 | Luke Littler (107.08) | PDC | 16–3 | Martin Lukeman (93.42) | £650,000 | £150,000 | £70,000 |
| 2025 | Luke Littler (100.61) | PDC | 16–11 | Luke Humphries (99.56) | £650,000 | £150,000 | £70,000 |
| Stage | Format | Details |
| Match format | Legs | All matches are played in leg format. |
| Number of players | 48 | 16 groups of three players |
| Group draw | Seeded | Each group contains one seeded player. |
| Group stage | Round-robin | Every player faces every other player once. |
| Points system | 2 points | Two points awarded for a win |
| Qualification | Group winners | The top player in each group qualifies. |
| Knockout stage | Last 16 | 16 group winners advance to the knockout stage |
Samuel Gill, Head Editor for DartsNews.com, sees Ross Smith winning another major.
I have two winners for the title. Ross Smith is my pick always as of late; in my eyes, he and Luke Humphries have been the standouts in the second half of the season, and I see that dictating a format that can rip chances away but also allow players to grow into the format.
Smith for me to win it. But I wouldn't also be shocked to see Luke Littler doing so (a rogue, I know). But I have often said on our podcast that he is bound to have this MVG-type run where he won't win a few majors, then he wins the next few.
So I see him managing to pull a rabbit out of the hat again here. Also good runs for Raymond Smith, Charlie Manby and Joe Hunt beckon for me. I also throw James Wade, Nathan Aspinall and Gerwyn Price into the fire when it comes to a good run.
*** Ross Smith
** Luke Humphries, Luke Littler
* James Wade, Nathan Aspinall, Gerwyn Price
Lucas Michael, Editor for DartsNews.com has picked Luke Humphries for the title.
The Grand Slam of Darts can be a brutal tournament. For the top players, it could all be over before it even starts if they fail to make it out of the group phase. From my point of view, I reckon that the majority of the big names will safely make it out.
As ever, Luke Littler will go into the tournament as the favourite to many, but I do not think it is as simple. If anything, Luke Humphries is the man in form following his World Grand Prix triumph and brace of Players Championship Finals the other week.
Littler is susceptible to a defeat in recent times, his doubling way off his ridiculous standards. I am not going to say that Littler will lose in the early rounds. I think he will still go deep in a tournament that he has never lost a match at, but maybe a semi-final exit could be on the cards with him disliking the afternoon sessions. A stretch but could occur.
At the rate this season is going, Gerwyn Price will occur in the semi-finals at least. His form at the backend of tournaments simply has not been good enough, linking to his major title drought. A three-time champion, he has to be in that favourite bracket alongside Littler and Humphries. Jonny Clayton, Ross Smith and Gian van Veen also have great chances of prevailing.
Michael van Gerwen will be an intriguing player to watch. Going back to that first paragraph, I believe that if any of the favourites are going to be dumped out in the opening segment, it could be the three-time Grand Slam champion falling at this early stage.
As for the champion, I am already looking towards Ally Pally. Unless an outside name pinches glory, I can see the winner of this tournament also coming out on top in North London at the start of 2027. The two Luke’s are the obvious candidates, and Humphries catches my eye for a big few months.
*** Luke Humphries
** Luke Littler Ross Smith
*Jonny Clayton, Gerwyn Price, Gian van Veen
Mats Leering, Editor for DartsNieuws.com also has a feeling Humphries will win the title.
Somehow, I have a feeling that Luke Littler won’t win the Grand Slam of Darts either. For starters, the world champion has been drawn into a particularly tough group alongside Beau Greaves and Niels Zonneveld. Although he will still be the favourite to finish top of the group on paper, the short format means that winning both matches is far from guaranteed. After all, Littler has already suffered defeats against both Zonneveld and Greaves in the past.
On top of that, I actually think Luke Humphries is the slight favourite to lift the trophy at the moment. ‘Cool Hand Luke’ appears to be back to his brilliant best and has gained plenty of confidence from his recent performances. He has also been handed a relatively favourable group, and once the format gets longer in the knockout stages, he will be incredibly difficult to beat.
I’m also backing Gerwyn Price to enjoy another strong run, just as he has done at virtually every major tournament this year. However, I fear that the title might once again prove just beyond his reach. If there is one tournament where ‘The Iceman’ can finally end his major title drought, though, it has to be the Grand Slam of Darts, a competition he has already won three times. And I certainly hope he can pull it off.
As for the Dutch players, I find it much harder to make a prediction. Michael van Gerwen showed flashes of his old brilliance during the last two Players Championship events, but the big question is always which version of Van Gerwen will turn up. Wessel Nijman has been in outstanding form throughout the year, yet he still hasn’t managed to translate that form onto the televised stage. Gian van Veen, meanwhile, has generally been solid, but he hasn’t quite been as convincing lately, with deep runs to semi-finals and finals becoming less frequent. Unfortunately, I fear we won’t see a single Dutch player reach the semi-finals this time around.
Finally, I think Ross Smith is definitely someone to keep an eye on. ‘Smudger’ has been flying over the past few months, and it would hardly be a surprise to see him make another deep run in Wolverhampton. I also fancy James Wade to reach the last four.
***Luke Humphries
**Gerwyn Price, Luke Littler
*Ross Smith, James Wade, Gian van Veen
Nicolas Gayer, Editor for DartsNews.DE also doesn't see Luke Littler returning to form.
I have said it several times over the past few weeks, and I will say it again: right now, it feels as though the familiar pecking order at the top of the darts world has been restored. The two Lukes, and then everyone else.
Of course, that is a slight oversimplification and perhaps a little unfair on players who are currently in fantastic form, such as Ross Smith, James Wade and Jonny Clayton. But I genuinely believe that the Grand Slam title will come down to Littler and Humphries.
And this time, I am actually going with Luke Humphries. Right now, we seem to be witnessing one of the very best versions of “Cool Hand Luke” we have ever seen. The Englishman is in outstanding form and absolutely brimming with confidence, something he underlined once again last week with two seemingly effortless runs to finals on the floor, one of which ended with him winning the title.
Factor in the fact that Luke Littler is going through a relatively quiet spell by his own extraordinary standards, having failed to progress beyond the quarter-finals at any of his last three majors, and I cannot shake the feeling that “The Nuke” and “Cool Hand Luke” might be closer in terms of their level than at any point since the opening months of Littler’s career — perhaps even since the 2024 World Championship final.
Beyond my main title contenders, there are three players in particular whom I fancy to make deep runs in Wolverhampton: Ross Smith, Gerwyn Price and Nathan Aspinall. All three have one thing in common: I see them as overwhelming favourites to win their respective groups, and I expect them to progress comfortably into the knockout stages. That alone provides an important foundation for a deep run in the tournament.
On the other side of the coin, Josh Rock is the seed I consider most vulnerable. The Northern Irishman enters the tournament as the number eight seed, but in my opinion, his current performances are not quite living up to that ranking. In a group featuring the in-form Kevin Doets and Tommy Morris, I would actually consider Rock the underdog.
Finally, I want to throw one more name into the mix as my pick for a dark-horse run — the kind we have seen so often at majors like the Grand Slam over the years: Charlie Manby. The young Englishman recently claimed his first senior PDC title on the floor and has already shown at the World Championship that he is made for the big stage. With that combination of form, confidence and big-stage mentality, I believe he has all the ingredients to produce a surprise run in Wolverhampton.
***Luke Humphries
**Luke Littler, Ross Smith
*Gerwyn Price, Nathan Aspinall, Charlie Manby
Pieter Verbeek, Editor for DartsNieuws.com has picked Luke Littler for the title with trouble for big names.
I’m very curious to see how the new format of the Grand Slam of Darts will play out. We’ve gone from eight groups of four players to 16 groups of three, with only one player from each group progressing to the knockout stage instead of two. That leaves even less room for error. I also expect leg difference to play a decisive role in plenty of groups, which could make for some surprising outcomes. Don’t be surprised if only around eight of the 16 seeded players manage to reach the last 16.
With that in mind, I can see Josh Rock, Stephen Bunting, Ryan Searle, Jonny Clayton, Luke Woodhouse and James Wade running into trouble. Luke Littler has been handed a tricky group alongside Niels Zonneveld and Beau Greaves, but I’m expecting a fired-up Littler in Wolverhampton. ‘The Nuke’ has now gone three consecutive majors without lifting a trophy, so his motivation to prove himself again ahead of the World Darts Championship will be even greater. History is certainly on the English teenager’s side, as he has never lost a match at the Grand Slam of Darts.
For me, his biggest challenger is Luke Humphries, who should have little trouble progressing from his group alongside Joe Cullen and Paolo Nebrida. After all, Humphries remains the player who comes closest to matching Littler’s level on a consistent basis.
Gerwyn Price has also managed to reach those heights on several occasions this year, but he always seems to have one match where absolutely nothing goes his way, and ‘The Iceman’ often ends up losing those encounters.
Ross Smith certainly deserves to be mentioned among the outsiders following his title triumphs at the World Series of Darts Finals and the European Championship. Those victories make Smith the most successful player of the autumn so far.
My final outsider is Gian van Veen, who appears to be getting back towards his best form. The Dutchman consistently reaches the latter stages of tournaments, although it has become clear that his energy reserves have been running pretty low towards the end of those events.
However, those were mainly weekend tournaments, whereas at the Grand Slam of Darts, players have to play a maximum of one match per day, with the exception of the semi-finals and final. That schedule should suit Van Veen particularly well.
*** Luke Littler
** Luke Humphries
*Gerwyn Price, Ross Smith, Gian van Veen
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