Get ready for a darting extravaganza like no other! The 2025 WDF World Championship at Lakeside is set to ignite with a thrilling opening night, and reigning champion Shane McGuirk will face Finland’s Petri Rasmus in a showdown you won’t want to miss. But here’s where it gets even more exciting: this is just one of six first-round matches kicking off on Friday, November 28th, with 2023 semi-finalist Dennis Nilsson taking on Canada’s Shane Sakchekapo in the opener. And this is the part most people miss—Sakchekapo is among seven male debutants stepping onto the iconic stage that night, alongside Alex Williams, Romeo Grbavac, Clint Clarkson, Haruki Muramatsu, Vince Tipple, and Rasmus. Talk about a fresh wave of talent!
This year’s tournament promises 10 days of non-stop action, featuring 85 players across 15 sessions, all vying for the title of WDF World Champion in the Girls’, Youth, Women’s, and Open competitions. But here’s the controversial part: with so many newcomers, could we see an underdog rise to the top and shake up the darting world?
The Women’s tournament starts with a bang on Friday night, as Mayumi Ouchi faces Nina Lech-Musialska. Meanwhile, two-time World Champion Mikuru Suzuki makes her highly anticipated Lakeside return on Saturday, squaring off against Finland’s Kirsi Viinikainen. Is Suzuki still the force to be reckoned with, or will a new star emerge?
Top seeds like James Beeton, Jimmy van Schie, and Brian Raman will also take center stage over the weekend, while Sunday introduces Mitchell Lawrie, the youngest player to compete in a senior World Championship, against Japan’s Tomoya Maruyama. Will youth triumph over experience?
The drama continues into the week, with women’s top seed Lerena Rietbergen and 2022 World Champion Neil Duff entering the fray. By Tuesday, new Women’s World Master Lorraine Hyde takes on either Paula Murphy or Emine Dursun, setting the stage for a thrilling Last 16 in the Women’s competition.
The Youth tournament begins on Thursday, with Mitchell Lawrie leading the charge against Adam Sepsi. All Quarter-Finals for the Open and Women’s tournaments are set for Friday, December 5th, followed by Semi-Final Saturday on December 6th, where Paige Pauling starts her title defense against Turkish debutant Zehra Gemi. Will experience prevail, or will a newcomer steal the spotlight?
The grand finale arrives on Sunday, December 7th, as we crown the 2025 World Champions live on S4C. Who will rise to the top? And more importantly, who will you be rooting for?
Check out the full schedule below and grab your tickets via our Eventbrite page. Don’t miss your chance to witness history in the making!
Full Schedule
Friday 28th November, 6pm GMT
- Open Round 1: Dennis Nilsson v Shane Sakchekapo
- Open Round 1: Alex Williams v Romeo Grbavac
- Women's Round 1: Mayumi Ouchi v Nina Lech-Musialska
- Open Round 1: Cliff Prior v Clint Clarkson
- Open Round 1: Kevin Luke v Sybren Gijbels
- Open Round 1: Vince Tipple v Haruki Muramatsu
- Open Round 1: Shane McGuirk v Petri Rasmus
Saturday 29th November, 12:30pm GMT
- Open Round 1: Caleb Hope v Darren Johnson
- Women's Round 1: Joanne Hadley v Eve Watson
- Open Round 1: Ben Robb v Johan Engstrom
- Women's Round 1: Jitka Cisarova v Maud Jansson
- Open Round 2: James Beeton (4) v Nilsson/Sakchekapo
Saturday 29th November, 6pm GMT
- Open Round 1: Ryan Hogarth v Jonas Masalin
- Women's Round 1: Kirsi Viinikainen v Mikuru Suzuki
- Open Round 1: Karl Schaefer v Daniel Bauerdick
- Women's Round 1: Irina Armstrong v Maria Carli
- Open Round 1: Brian Raman v Jeffrey Sparidaans
- Open Round 2: Jimmy van Schie (1) v Williams/Grbavac
Sunday 30th November, 12:30pm GMT
- Open Round 1: Marko Kantele v Dalibor Smolik
- Women's Round 1: Priscilla Steenbergen v Ouchi/Lech-Musialska
- Open Round 1: Jim McEwan v Stephen Rosney
- Women's Round 1: Paula Murphy v Emine Dursun
- Open Round 2: Liam Maendl-Lawrance (13) v Hope/Johnson
Sunday 30th November, 6pm GMT
- Open Round 1: Jenson Walker v Jiri Brejcha
- Women's Round 1: Aletta Wajer v Aaja Jalbert
- Open Round 1: Bradley Kirk v Jeff Springer Jr
- Women's Round 1: Paige Pauling v Lisa Zollikofer
- Open Round 1: Mitchell Lawrie v Tomoya Maruyama
- Open Round 2: Stefan Schroder (9) v McGuirk/Rasmus
Monday 1st December, 6pm GMT
- Open Round 2: Paul Krohne (16) v Kantele/Smolik
- Women's Round 2: Nicole Regnaud (4) v Armstrong/Carli
- Open Round 2: Raymond Smith (11) v Prior/Clarkson
- Open Round 2: Corne Groeneveld (8) v Hogarth/Masalin
- Women's Round 2: Lerena Rietbergen (1) v Wajer/Jalbert
- Open Round 2: Neil Duff (3) v Robb/Engstrom
Tuesday 2nd December, 6pm GMT
- Open Round 2: Benjamin Pratnemer (5) v Schaefer/Bauerdick
- Women's Round 2: Lorraine Hyde (2) v Murphy/Dursun
- Open Round 2: Francois Schweyen (10) v Raman/Sparidaans
- Open Round 2: Matt Clark (7) v Tipple/Muramatsu
- Women's Round 2: Tracy Feiertag (7) v Steenbergen/Ouchi/Lech-Musialska
- Open Round 2: David Pallett (12) v Luke/Gijbels
Wednesday 3rd December, 6pm GMT
- Open Round 2: Thomas Junghans (14) v McEwan/Rosney
- Women's Round 2: Sophie McKinlay (6) v Pauling/Zollikofer
- Open Round 2: Andy Davidson (15) v Kirk/Springer Jr
- Open Round 2: David Fatum (6) v Walker/Brejcha
- Women's Round 2: Deta Hedman (3) v Viinikainen/Suzuki
- Open Round 2: Jason Brandon (2) v Lawrie/Maruyama
Thursday 4th December, 12:00pm GMT
- Open Round 3: Beeton/Nilsson/Sakchekapo v Maendl-Lawrance/Hope/Johnson
- Open Round 3: Clark/Tipple/Muramatsu v Schweyen/Raman/Sparidaans
- Youth Quarter-Final: Mitchell Lawrie (1) v Adam Sepsi
- Open Round 3: Pratnemer/Schaefer/Bauerdick v Pallett/Luke/Gijbels
- Women's Round 2: Rhian O'Sullivan (5) v Cisarova/Jansson
- Open Round 3: Groeneveld/Hogarth/Masalin v Schroder/McGuirk/Rasmus
Thursday 4th December, 6pm GMT
- Open Round 3: Van Schie/Williams/Grbavac v Krohne/Kantele/Smolik
- Youth Quarter-Final: Kaya Baysal (4) v Thees Kogelnik
- Open Round 3: Duff/Robb/Engstrom v Junghans/McEwan/Rosney
- Women's Round 2: Aileen de Graaf (8) v Hadley/Watson
- Open Round 3: Fatum/Walker/Brejcha v Smith/Prior/Clarkson
- Open Round 3: Brandon/Lawrie/Maruyama v Davidson/Kirk/Springer Jr
Friday 5th December, 12pm GMT
- 2 x Open Quarter-Finals
- 2 x Women’s Quarter-Finals
- Youth Quarter-Final: Mason Teese (3) v Benedek Szabo
Friday 5th December, 6:30pm GMT
- 2 x Open Quarter-Finals
- 2 x Women’s Quarter-Finals
- Youth Quarter-Final: Florian Preis (2) v Archie Self
Saturday 6th December, 12pm GMT
- Girls’ Semi-Final: Ruby Grey (2) v Rebecca Allen
- 1 x Youth Semi-Final
- 1 x Women’s Semi-Final
- 1 x Open Semi-Final
Saturday 6th December, 5:30pm GMT
- Girls’ Semi-Final: Paige Pauling (1) v Zehra Gemi
- 1 x Youth Semi-Final
- 1 x Women’s Semi-Final
- 1 x Open Semi-Final
Sunday 7th December, 2pm GMT
- Girls’ Final
- Youth Final
- Women’s Final
- Open Final
For full details on the tournament format, prize money, and broadcasting, visit the WDF website. Tickets are available now on Eventbrite—don’t miss out!
