Dutch Darts Championship 2026: FAQ

FAQ

Who won the Dutch Darts Championship 2026?

The Elten Safety Shoes Dutch Darts Championship 2026 was won by the Dutchman Niels Zonneveld. In the all-Dutch final over Best of 15 Legs he beat Danny Noppert 8-5 and collected £35,000 for it.

When and where did the darts tournament in Maastricht take place?

The Elten Safety Shoes Dutch Darts Championship 2026 was held from 16 to 18 October 2026 at the MECC in Maastricht (Netherlands). It was the 15th and final event of the PDC European Tour 2026 and at the same time the sixth staging of the tournament. The afternoon sessions started at 1pm (doors from 12pm), the evening sessions at 7pm (doors from 6pm).

How did the quarter-finals and semi-finals at the DDC 2026 end?

Gian van Veen won the first quarter-final 6-3 against Ryan Searle, Danny Noppert came through 6-2 against Luke Woodhouse, Niels Zonneveld had the upper hand 6-5 against Wessel Nijman and Stephen Bunting won 6-3 against Damon Heta. In the semi-finals over Best of 13 Legs, Noppert beat van Veen 7-5 and Zonneveld beat Bunting 7-4.

Who was the defending champion at the Dutch Darts Championship?

The defending champion was Jonny Clayton from Wales, who had won the 2025 final in Rosmalen 8-6 against Niko Springer – his 17th PDC title. In Maastricht, Clayton went out as early as the 2nd round, losing 1-6 to Damon Heta.

How much prize money was there at the darts in Maastricht?

A total of £230,000 was paid out at the 2026 Elten Safety Shoes Dutch Darts Championship. The winner received £35,000, the runner-up £15,000, the semi-finalists £10,000 each, the quarter-finalists £8,000 each, the last-16 losers £5,000 each, the 2nd-round losers £3,500 each and the 1st-round losers £2,000 each.

What format was played at the darts tournament in Maastricht and how do you qualify?

The tournament was played as a knockout with 48 players: best of 11 legs up to and including the quarter-finals, best of 13 in the semi-finals and best of 15 legs in the final, in double-out format. Eligible to take part were the top 16 of the PDC Order of Merit (seeded into the 2nd round on Saturday), the 16 best players not yet qualified from the Pro Tour Order of Merit and 16 qualifiers from the Tour Card Holder Qualifier, Host Nation Qualifier, Nordic & Baltic Qualifier and East Europe Qualifier.

Who threw the highest Average at the Dutch Darts Championship 2026?

Gian van Veen threw a 3-dart average of 120.24 in his 6-0 win over Sebastian Białecki in the 2nd round – the highest average ever played on the European Darts Tour, beating Dave Chisnall's record (118.66 from 2018). Next on the tournament's all-time list are Danny Noppert with 113.42 from the 2026 quarter-finals, Michael Smith with 111.10 from 2022 and Cristo Reyes with 110.26. The highest finish of the tournament came from Martin Schindler with 164.

Who shows the Dutch Darts Championship live on TV and stream – which channel is broadcasting it?

In German-speaking countries, the streaming services DAZN and Pluto TV broadcast the tournament; DAZN shows all European Tour events live, and the action is also available free of charge via the DAZN Darts X Channel on Pluto TV. Internationally, the Elten Safety Shoes Dutch Darts Championship was streamed on PDC TV. On German free-to-air TV, Sport1 is showing only the European Darts Trophy, the German Darts Grand Prix, the European Darts Grand Prix and the Swiss Darts Trophy in 2026.