PDC World Darts Championship facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
PDC World Darts Championship

The stage at the 2016 edition
Founded	1994
Inaugural season	1994
Organising body	Professional Darts Corporation
Country	England
Venue(s)	Circus Tavern (1994–2007) Alexandra Palace (since 2008)
Most recent champion(s)	Luke Littler (2025)
TV partner(s)	Sky Sports (1993–)
Tournament format	Sets
2025 PDC World Darts Championship

The PDC World Darts Championship, known for sponsorship purposes as the Paddy Power World Darts Championship is a world championship competition held annually in the sport of darts. The championship begins in December and ends in January and has been held at Alexandra Palace in London, since 2008. Organised by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), it is the most prestigious of their tournaments, with the winner receiving the Sid Waddell Trophy, named in honour of the darts commentator Sid Waddell. Along with the Premier League Darts and World Matchplay, it is part of the Triple Crown.

The PDC championship began in 1994 as the WDC World Darts Championship as one of the consequences of the split in darts, which saw the World Darts Council break away from the BDO. As a result of the settlement between the BDO and the WDC in 1997, the WDC became the PDC, and players were then free to choose which world championship to enter (but not both in the same year), as long as they met certain eligibility criteria. Both organisations continued to organize their own world championship until the 2020 editions, after which the BDO folded.

There have been thirteen different winners since the tournament's inception. With 14 wins from 25 appearances, Phil Taylor dominated the competition until last winning it in 2013. Other players to win more than once are John Part (2003 & 2008), Adrian Lewis (2011 & 2012), Gary Anderson (2015 & 2016), Michael van Gerwen (2014, 2017 & 2019) and Peter Wright (2020 & 2022). The one-time winners are the inaugural champion Dennis Priestley (1994), Raymond van Barneveld (2007), Rob Cross (2018), Gerwyn Price (2021), Michael Smith (2023), Luke Humphries (2024) and Luke Littler (2025).

History

A match between Mensur Suljović and Kevin Painter at the 2010 championship

In 1992, some high-profile players, including all previous winners of the BDO World Darts Championship still active in the game, formed the WDC, and in 1994, held their first World Championship. Dennis Priestley won the inaugural competition.

The players who broke away were taking a significant gamble – the tournament was broadcast on satellite television rather than terrestrial, and from 1994 to 2001, the prize fund for the players in the WDC/PDC World Championship was lower than the prize fund in the BDO version, although the 1997 PDC World Champion received £45,000 compared to that year's BDO World Champion receiving £38,000. In 2002, the PDC prize fund overtook that of the BDO for the first time, and the PDC event now boasts the largest prize fund of any darts competition. In 2010, the prize fund reached £1 million for the first time, with the champion collecting £200,000.

The 2014 and 2015 PDC world champions collected £250,000 for their wins. For the next three years, the winner's share increased by £50,000 each year culminating in a 2018 prize fund of £1.8 million. The current prize fund for the tournament is £2.5 million with £500,000 to the winner, as set since the 2019 edition.

Venue

The tournament has been held at Alexandra Palace in London since 2008, having previously been held at the Circus Tavern in Purfleet, Essex, from 1994 to 2007. Currently, the play takes place inside the venue's West Hall, which has a capacity of 3,200.

List of finals

Year	Champion (average in final)	Score	Runner-up (average in final)	Prize money			Sponsor	Venue
				Total	Champion	Runner-up
1994	Priestley, DennisDennis Priestley (94.38)	6–1	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (85.62)	£64,000	£16,000	£8,000	Skol	Circus Tavern, Purfleet
1995	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (94.11)	6–2	Harrington, RodRod Harrington (87.15)	£55,000	£12,000	£6,000	Proton Cars
1996	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (98.52)	6–4	Priestley, DennisDennis Priestley (101.48)	£62,500	£14,000	£7,000	Vernon's Pools
1997	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (100.92)	6–3	Priestley, DennisDennis Priestley (96.78)	£99,500	£45,000	£10,000	Red Band
1998	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (103.98)	6–0	Priestley, DennisDennis Priestley (90.75)	£72,500	£20,000		Skol
1999	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (97.11)	6–2	Manley, PeterPeter Manley (93.63)	£104,000	£30,000	£16,000
2000	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (94.42)	7–3	Priestley, DennisDennis Priestley (91.80)	£111,000	£31,000	£16,400
2001	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (107.46)	7–0	Part, JohnJohn Part (92.58)	£125,000	£33,000	£18,000
2002	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (98.47)	7–0	Manley, PeterPeter Manley (91.35)	£205,000	£50,000	£25,000
2003	Part, JohnJohn Part (96.87)	7–6	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (99.98)	£237,000			Ladbrokes
2004	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (96.03)	7–6	Painter, KevinKevin Painter (90.48)	£257,000
2005	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (96.14)	7–4	Dudbridge, MarkMark Dudbridge (90.66)	£300,000	£60,000	£30,000
2006	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (106.74)	7–0	Manley, PeterPeter Manley (91.72)	£500,000	£100,000	£50,000
2007	Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld (100.93)	7–6	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (100.86)
2008	Part, JohnJohn Part (92.86)	7–2	Shepherd, KirkKirk Shepherd (85.10)	£589,000				Alexandra Palace, London
2009	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (110.94)	7–1	Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld (101.18)	£724,000	£125,000	£60,000
2010	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (104.38)	7–3	Whitlock, SimonSimon Whitlock (100.51)	£1,000,000	£200,000	£100,000
2011	Lewis, AdrianAdrian Lewis (99.40)	7–5	Anderson, GaryGary Anderson (99.41)
2012	Lewis, AdrianAdrian Lewis (93.06)	7–3	Hamilton, AndyAndy Hamilton (90.83)
2013	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (103.04)	7–4	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen (100.66)
2014	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen (100.10)	7–4	Wright, PeterPeter Wright (95.71)	£1,050,000	£250,000
2015	Anderson, GaryGary Anderson (97.68)	7–6	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (100.69)	£1,250,000		£120,000	William Hill
2016	Anderson, GaryGary Anderson (99.26)	7–5	Lewis, AdrianAdrian Lewis (100.23)	£1,500,000	£300,000	£150,000
2017	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen (107.79)	7–3	Anderson, GaryGary Anderson (104.93)	£1,650,000	£350,000	£160,000
2018	Cross, RobRob Cross (107.67)	7–2	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor (102.26)	£1,800,000	£400,000	£170,000
2019	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen (102.21)	7–3	Smith, MichaelMichael Smith (95.29)	£2,500,000	£500,000	£200,000
2020	Wright, PeterPeter Wright (102.79)	7–3	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen (102.88)
2021	Price, GerwynGerwyn Price (100.08)	7–3	Anderson, GaryGary Anderson (94.25)
2022	Wright, PeterPeter Wright (98.34)	7–5	Smith, MichaelMichael Smith (99.22)
2023	Smith, MichaelMichael Smith (100.71)	7–4	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen (99.58)				Cazoo
2024	Humphries, LukeLuke Humphries (103.67)	7–4	Luke Littler (101.13)				Paddy Power
2025	Luke Littler (102.73)	7–3	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen (100.69)

Records and statistics

Total finalist appearances

Rank	Player	Winner	Runner-up	Finals	Apps
1	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor	14	5	19	25
2	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	3	4	7	18
3	Anderson, GaryGary Anderson	2	3	5	16
4	Lewis, AdrianAdrian Lewis	2	1	3	18
	Part, JohnJohn Part	2	1	3	18
	Wright, PeterPeter Wright	2	1	3	16
7	Priestley, DennisDennis Priestley	1	4	5	19
8	Smith, MichaelMichael Smith	1	2	3	14
9	Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld	1	1	2	18
	Luke Littler	1	1	2	2
11	Cross, RobRob Cross	1	0	1	8
	Humphries, LukeLuke Humphries	1	0	1	8
	Price, GerwynGerwyn Price	1	0	1	11
12	Manley, PeterPeter Manley	0	3	3	13
14	Dudbridge, MarkMark Dudbridge	0	1	1	10
	Hamilton, AndyAndy Hamilton	0	1	1	13
	Harrington, RodRod Harrington	0	1	1	10
	Painter, KevinKevin Painter	0	1	1	17
	Shepherd, KirkKirk Shepherd	0	1	1	4
	Whitlock, SimonSimon Whitlock	0	1	1	15

• Active players are shown in bold
• Only players who reached the final are included
• In the event of identical records, players are sorted in alphabetical order by family name

Champions by country

Country	Players	Total	First title	Last title
England	7	21	1994	2025
Netherlands	2	4	2007	2019
Scotland	2	4	2015	2022
Canada	1	2	2003	2008
Wales	1	1	2021	2021

Nine-dart finishes

Sixteen nine-dart finishes have been thrown at the World Championship. The first one was in 2009.
Two have been made in world finals: firstly by Adrian Lewis in 2011 and then Michael Smith in 2023.

Number	Player	Year (+ Round)	Method	Opponent	Result
1.	Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld	2009, Quarter-Final	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	Klaasen, JelleJelle Klaasen	Won
2.	Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld	2010, 2nd Round	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	Dolan, BrendanBrendan Dolan	Won
3.	Lewis, AdrianAdrian Lewis	2011, Final	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	Anderson, GaryGary Anderson	Won
4.	Winstanley, DeanDean Winstanley	2013, 2nd Round	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	Voort, Vincent van derVincent van der Voort	Lost
5.	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2013, Semi-Final	3 x T20; 2 x T20, T19; 2 x T20, D12	Wade, JamesJames Wade	Won
6.	Jenkins, TerryTerry Jenkins	2014, 1st Round	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	Laursen, PerPer Laursen	Lost
7.	Anderson, KyleKyle Anderson	2014, 1st Round	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	White, IanIan White	Lost
8.	Lewis, AdrianAdrian Lewis	2015, 3rd Round	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld	Lost
9.	Anderson, GaryGary Anderson	2016, Semi-Final	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	Klaasen, JelleJelle Klaasen	Won
10.	Wade, JamesJames Wade	2021, 3rd Round	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	Bunting, StephenStephen Bunting	Lost
11.	Borland, WilliamWilliam Borland	2022, 1st Round	3 x T20; 2 x T20, T19; 2 x T20, D12	Brooks, BradleyBradley Brooks	Won
12.	Labanauskas, DariusDarius Labanauskas	2022, 1st Round	T20, 2 x T19; 3 x T20; T20, T17, D18	De Decker, MikeMike De Decker	Lost
13.	Price, GerwynGerwyn Price	2022, Quarter-Final	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T19, T20, D12	Smith, MichaelMichael Smith	Lost
14.	Smith, MichaelMichael Smith	2023, Final	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	Won
15.	Kist, ChristianChristian Kist	2025, 1st Round	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	Razma, MadarsMadars Razma	Lost
16.	Heta, DamonDamon Heta	2025, 3rd Round	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	Woodhouse, LukeLuke Woodhouse	Lost

Averages

Since the breakaway of the PDC players, there has been much debate about the relative merits of the players within each organisation. The debate often focuses on the three-dart averages of players in matches.

An average over 100 in a match in the PDC World Championship has since been achieved 195 times. This is compared to 21 times in the BDO World Championship, following the 2019 event. In 2010 Phil Taylor became the first player to average over 100 in all six rounds of the tournament. He repeated this feat (though lost the final) in 2015 and Michael van Gerwen achieved it in 2017 and 2019.

An average of over 105 in a match in the PDC World Championship has been achieved 40 times. The highest match average ever in the BDO World Championship is 103.83 by Raymond van Barneveld in his quarter-final victory over John Walton in 2004.

Ten highest PDC World Championship one-match averages
Average	Player	Year (+Round)	Opponent	Result
114.05	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2017, Semi-Final	Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld	6–2
111.21	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor	2002, 2nd Round	Burgess, ShayneShayne Burgess	6–1
110.94	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor	2009, Final	Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld	7–1
109.34	Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld	2017, Semi-Final	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2–6
109.23	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2016, 2nd Round	Webster, DarrenDarren Webster	4–0
109.00	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor	2007, 2nd Round	McGowan, MickMick McGowan	4–1
108.98	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2021, 2nd Round	Murray, RyanRyan Murray	3–1
108.80	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor	2009, Quarter-Final	Stompé, CoCo Stompé	5–0
108.74	Humphries, LukeLuke Humphries	2024, Semi-Final	Williams, ScottScott Williams	6–0
108.65	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2018, 2nd Round	Wilson, JamesJames Wilson	4–0

Five highest losing averages
Average	Player	Year (+Round)	Opponent	Result
109.34	Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld	2017, Semi-Final	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2–6
106.09	de Zwaan, JeffreyJeffrey de Zwaan	2019, 2nd Round	Cross, RobRob Cross	1–3
106.07	Reyes, CristoCristo Reyes	2017, 2nd Round	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2–4
105.78	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2016, 3rd Round	Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld	3–4
104.93	Anderson, GaryGary Anderson	2017, Final	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	3–7

Players with 5 or more 100+ match average (updated 3 January 2025)
Player	Total	Highest Av.	Year (+Round)
Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor	56	111.21	2002, 2nd Round
Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	42	114.05	2017, Semi-Final
Anderson, GaryGary Anderson	23	108.39	2011, 3rd Round
Wright, PeterPeter Wright	16	105.86	2020, Quarter-Final
Lewis, AdrianAdrian Lewis	15	106.51	2010, 1st Round
Barneveld, Raymond vanRaymond van Barneveld	13	109.34	2017, Semi-Final
Smith, MichaelMichael Smith	13	106.32	2022, 2nd Round
Luke Littler	10	106.12	2024, 1st Round
Cross, RobRob Cross	7	107.67	2018, Final
Chisnall, DaveDave Chisnall	7	107.34	2021, Quarter-Final
Bunting, StephenStephen Bunting	7	107.28	2024, 2nd Round
Whitlock, SimonSimon Whitlock	7	105.37	2010, Quarter-Final
Van den Bergh, DimitriDimitri Van den Bergh	6	105.61	2021, 2nd Round
Price, GerwynGerwyn Price	5	104.20	2020, 3rd Round

Ten highest tournament averages (min 3 matches)
Average	Player	Year	Round (+ result)	Reference
106.32	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2017	Final (won)
104.68	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2016	3rd Round
104.63	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor	2010	Final (won)
104.19	Lewis, AdrianAdrian Lewis	2010	Quarter-Final
104.08	Taylor, PhilPhil Taylor	2009	Final (won)
104.05	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2018	Semi-Final
103.64	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2021	Quarter-Final
103.45	Anderson, GaryGary Anderson	2017	Final (loss)
103.38	Gerwen, Michael vanMichael van Gerwen	2019	Final (won)
103.06	Anderson, GaryGary Anderson	2011	Final (loss)

Records

Most titles: 14, Phil Taylor. Taylor's two BDO titles take his total to 16, a record across both organisations.

Most finals: 19, Phil Taylor, 1994–2007, 2009–2010, 2013, 2015 and 2018. Taylor's two BDO finals take his total to 21, a record across both organisations.

Most match wins: 110, Phil Taylor, 1994–2018. Taylor has only lost 11 matches at the tournament and reached every final from 1994 until 2007, before being beaten in the quarter-finals by Wayne Mardle in 2008.

Longest unbeaten run: 44 matches, Phil Taylor, 1995–2003, between his defeats in the 1994 and 2003 finals.

Most 180s in a tournament (total): 914 in 2024.

Most 180s in a tournament (individual): 83, Michael Smith (2022)

Most 180s in a match: 24, Peter Wright (2022 semi-final) and Michael Smith (2022 final)

Most 180s in a match (both players): 42, Gary Anderson (22) and Michael van Gerwen (20) (2017 final)

Longest streak of 100+ averages: 19 matches, Michael van Gerwen, 2016–2019

Highest Average for one set: 140.91, Luke Littler, 2nd round 2025 championship.

Most appearances: 25, Phil Taylor.

Youngest player: Mitchell Clegg, 16 years and 37 days in 2007. Clegg had qualified as a 15-year-old. He was younger than Michael van Gerwen, who set the BDO World Championship youngest player record a few weeks later.

Youngest finalist: Luke Littler, 16 years and 347 days in the 2024 final. Littler was 4 years and 106 days younger than Kirk Shepherd, who reached the final in 2008.

Record TV audience UK: 3.71 million (2024 final)

Record TV audience outside UK: 3.10 million peak viewership and 2.19 million average viewership (2025 Final). The record was set during the German broadcast (Sport1) of the 2025 final between Michael van Gerwen and Luke Littler.

Won both World Championships: Four players. Dennis Priestley was the first player to win both versions of the World Championship, winning the 1991 BDO Championship and the 1994 PDC Championship. Phil Taylor, John Part and Raymond van Barneveld have since matched the feat.

Overseas World Champions: Three players. John Part was the first player from outside the UK to win the PDC World Championship with his 2003 title, followed by Raymond van Barneveld in 2007 and Michael van Gerwen in 2014. Part was also the first overseas player to win the BDO title, doing so in 1994.

Youngest World Champion: Luke Littler was 17 years 11 months and 13 days when he won his first world title in 2025

Oldest World Champion: Phil Taylor was 52 years and 5 months old when he won his last world title in 2013.

Media

Domestic broadcaster

The PDC World Championship has been broadcast live and in its entirety by Sky Sports in the UK since its inception. Since 2009 the tournament has been presented in High Definition (HD). Their coverage is currently presented from a studio overlooking the interior of the Alexandra Palace venue.

The current presenting team is as follows:

Presenters:

• Emma Paton: (2020–present)
• Anna Woolhouse: (2022–present)
• Michael Bridge: (2023–present)

Commentators:

• Stuart Pyke: (2003–present)
• Rod Studd: (2009–present)
• Dan Dawson: (2022–present)
• Abi Davies: (2024–present)

Co-commentators/pundits:

• Wayne Mardle: (2010–2024)
• John Part: (2013–present)
• Mark Webster: (2018–present)
• Laura Turner: (2019–present)
• Glen Durrant: (2023–present)

Former presenters and commentators have been:

• Dave Lanning: (1993–2010 & 2013)
• John Gwynne: (1993–2013, 2016)
• Sid Waddell: (1994–2012)
• Jeff Stelling: (1993–2002, 2005)
• David Bobin: (1994, 2002–2003)
• Helen Chamberlain: (2003–2009)
• Jonathan Green: (2000)
• Laure James (2014–2016)
• Eric Bristow: (1993–2016)
• Dave Clark: (2001–2020)
• Colin Lloyd: (2020)
• Rod Harrington: (2005–2020)
• Nigel Pearson (2006–2022)
• David Croft: (2013–2021)
• Laura Woods: (2018–2022)
• Devon Petersen: (2019–2022)
• Adam Smith: (2020–2022)
• Corrine Hammond: (2022–2023)

Overseas broadcasters

Dutch broadcaster SBS6, having covered the BDO World Darts Championship for many years, also covered the event until RTL7 took over broadcasting. TV3 Sport (Denmark), Fox Sports (Australia), TSN (Canada), SuperSport (South Africa), Sky Sport (New Zealand), StarHub (Singapore), Ten Sports (India), CCTV (China), Showtime (Middle East), Ukraine TV, TVP Sport (Poland), NOVA Sport (Czech Republic and Slovakia), Sport1 (Germany, Hungary), Meersat (Malaysia), 7TV (Russia), Measat (Indonesia), J Sports (Japan), DAZN (USA, Italy), GOL TV (Spain) Eurosport (Romania), Viaplay (Iceland) and VTM4 (Belgium) now also broadcast the event.

Viewing figures

Television viewing figures for the final are as follows:

Webcasting

The PDC world championship events are now broadcast on www.livepdc.tv which shows the events live, highlights and also classic matches. This website is a subscription only viewing and is limited to certain territorial restrictions.

Video games

The PDC have worked with various video game developers since 2006 to create a number of darts-themed titles based on the World Darts Championship tournament.

Their first game PDC World Championship Darts was developed by Mere Mortals for the PlayStation 2 and PC. The second game in the series was PDC World Championship Darts 2008 developed by Mere Mortals for the PlayStation 2, PC, PlayStation Portable, Wii and Xbox 360. A year later Rebellion Developments took over development of the series, releasing PDC World Championship Darts 2009 for the Wii and Nintendo DS.

The most recent PDC World Darts Championship console game to be released was PDC World Championship Darts Pro Tour a darts video game for the PlayStation 3, Wii and Xbox 360. This game is the most comprehensive of the series featuring ten professional players and five official PDC tournaments including the PDC World Grand Prix, Las Vegas Desert Classic, PDC UK Open and the Holland Open.

In 2021 the PDC collaborated with Blueprint Gaming to develop PDC World Darts Championship, an officially licensed slots game available to play on mobile devices and PC, the game was released in February 2021.

Sponsor

The tournament has been sponsored by bookmaker Paddy Power in 2024. Previous sponsors have been:

• Skol (1994)
• Proton Cars (1995)
• Vernon's Pools (1996)
• Red Band (1997)
• Skol (1998–2002)
• Ladbrokes (2003–2014)
• William Hill (2015–2022)
• Cazoo (2023)
• Paddy Power (2024–)

Trophy

Following popular darts commentator Sid Waddell's death on 11 August 2012, the decision was made to rename the champion's trophy to the Sid Waddell trophy from the 2013 tournament onwards.

See also

In Spanish: Campeonato Mundial de Dardos de la PDC para niños